Photo: Honda Canada. CR-V is the highest-trading-volume used Honda in Canada, so its auction lane sets the trade-in tone for the brand.
Canadian used wholesale prices for two-to-six-year-old vehicles declined 0.21% in the week ending May 9, with truck and SUV segments down 0.37% — roughly twice the rate of passenger cars. Sub-compact cars fell 1.55% in isolation. The pace of decline has moderated but has not reversed. Multiple consecutive weeks of declines are now on record. Canadian Auto Dealer
What it means: Wholesale prices lead retail by roughly four to six weeks — what dealers pay at auction today becomes what's priced on the lot next month. Trucks and SUVs absorbing the steepest wholesale drops suggest used CR-V, Pilot, and Ridgeline retail prices have more room to fall through June. Compact cars are compressing faster at wholesale right now, but that's a smaller absolute-dollar move. The driver here is a combination of softening demand and the slow normalization of inventory that's been building since late 2025. For buyers, this is one of the first sustained windows in three years where waiting genuinely benefits the used-car shopper.
My prediction: Used Civic and Corolla-class retail prices in the GTA find a floor by July 2026 as new-car summer changeover tightens compact supply, while used CR-V and Pilot retail prices continue softening into Q3 2026 — landing 3–5% below where they are today. The split happens because new compact inventory is genuinely constrained, while SUV inventory is not.
If you're buying right now: Used compact cars (Civic, HR-V) are near or at floor — this is a reasonable time to move. Used SUVs (CR-V, Pilot) still have room to fall; if your timeline is flexible by 6–8 weeks, that patience could be worth $1,000–$2,000 off the retail ask. Ask any dealer you're working with to show you their acquisition cost — the wholesale data says there's room to negotiate.
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