Photo: Honda Canada. 2026 Honda CR-V exterior styling.
A DesRosiers Automotive Consultants and Used Car Dealers Association survey found 48.6% of franchised dealers said used-vehicle sourcing worsened in the first half of 2026. DAC said lower new light-vehicle sales between 2021 and 2024 are now contributing to a shortage of off-lease vehicles entering the used market. Franchised dealers still sourced an average 67.7% of those units from consumers. Independent dealers leaned on auctions for 48.6%. Canadian Auto Dealer
What it means: Two used-market stories are running at once. Wholesale values eased in August, which I just covered on the retention-index piece. Supply did not open the fire hose. Fewer new cars sold in 2021–2024 means fewer three- and four-year-old lease returns walking onto lots in 2026. That is why a clean used Civic or CR-V still gets a phone call the same day it is posted. I will not invent a Maple Honda unit count from a national survey. I will say what the survey actually measured: sourcing got harder for nearly half of franchised stores, and consumer trades still beat the auction lane.
Used sales themselves were not a collapse. Franchised dealers surveyed averaged 158 used units in the first half, versus 163 a year earlier. Independents averaged 54, versus 63. If you are coming off a Honda lease, the decision is still the one I walk through on Honda lease-return options in Ontario: keep, buy out, or trade. A lot of people buy out. That is one reason those cars never become someone else’s used inventory. Check the CARFAX service-history entries on any used Honda you actually want. Do not ask for a paper service-receipt pile most used vehicles never come with.
My prediction: By March 12, 2027, a follow-up DesRosiers or UCDA used-dealer survey will still show franchised dealers sourcing more than half of their used inventory from consumers rather than auctions. I will be wrong if that published consumer-source share is 50% or below.
If you're buying right now: If a clean used Civic or CR-V already fits, do not park the deal waiting for a wave of lease returns that this survey says has not arrived. Start with the car you can see this week on today’s best pre-owned Honda, then read the CARFAX service-history entries before you wait for “more used to hit the market.”
Quick answers
Why are used Honda lots still short of cars in 2026?
DesRosiers Automotive Consultants said lower new light-vehicle sales between 2021 and 2024 are now contributing to a shortage of off-lease vehicles entering the used market. In a DAC/UCDA survey, 48.6% of franchised dealers said used sourcing worsened in the first half of 2026.
Where are franchised dealers getting used cars right now?
For franchised dealers in that survey, an average 67.7% of vehicles sourced in the first half came from consumers. Independent dealers relied most on auctions, at 48.6% of their sourcing. That is why a clean trade-in still matters more than waiting for a wave of lease returns.
Should I wait for cheaper used Civics because values are easing?
Not if the car you want is already on a lot. Wholesale values eased in August, but this survey says sourcing is still tight. If a clean used Civic or CR-V fits, check the CARFAX service-history entries and the kilometres. Waiting for a flood of off-lease units is a bet against the 2021–2024 sales hole that created the shortage.
Shopping a used Civic or CR-V off this print?
Send the year, kilometres and the asking price you saw. I will tell you whether that unit is the market, or whether a different Honda on the lot is the cleaner buy — without pretending a lease-return wave is about to land.
Henry Chen
Sales and Leasing Executive, Maple Honda
89 Auto Vaughan Dr, Maple, ON L6A 4A1
647-523-6878 · henry@maplehonda.com
DesRosiers Automotive Consultants and Used Car Dealers Association survey as reported by Canadian Auto Dealer, September 3, 2026. Predictions are my personal read, not Honda Canada or DAC policy.
Ask Henry a question
Not ready to book anything? Just ask. Henry Chen answers every message himself — usually within a couple of hours during business hours. No call list, no pressure, and no obligation to buy anything.