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There are also signs of the new breed of low-capacity petrol engines beginning to usurp some of the market share previously soaked up by diesels. The latter's presence has dropped by a nominal but steady amount for the past three years, and it's being attributed to the arrival of clean petrol units in small cars.
"Diesel-engined cars' used car market share has dipped in recent years - down to 33% in 2012, from 34% in 2011 and 36% in 2010," says Henstock, who suggests much of this will be down to fewer new diesel vehicles from 2009's low actually reaching the marketplace and the fact that more private used car buyers are looking towards smaller, petrol-driven models.
Others are sceptical, but remain open to the idea that petrol vehicles may eventually surpass diesel in terms of RV strength. Woodward says: "There aren't enough [new petrols] around yet and there do seem to be some issues with their fuel consumption in real-world driving. But I do think they are helping to raise awareness of the mileage debate: how far do you have to drive to make it worth paying the extra?
"A critical factor going forward will be the extra cost of making diesels comply with Euro6 emissions standards from 2014."
Wallace makes the point that diesel-engined vehicles will lose the 3% benefit-in-kind penalty for company car drivers, which, while it is of a lesser consequence to corporate operators and used car buyers, still makes a stronger case for procuring diesel-engined vehicles from new: "The 3% diesel supplement is abolished in 2015/16, so from a driver's perspective, diesel cars will continue to look like attractive propositions."
He surmises: "In the short term, diesel will continue to be the preferred car for fleets, and there's a growing appetite for used diesels with the general public, which will help to maintain strong RVs.
"In the medium term, it's likely that new petrol technologies will tempt some fleets to switch back to petrol, but this will take a good few years to materialise. These new petrol cars are likely to be a little scarce for the first few years, which will help their RVs."
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