With close to 200,000 cases confirmed as of March 17, the COVID-19 outbreak is now a serious pandemic that's causing people to panic and storm supermarkets for supplies.

The situation is Europe is equally dramatic with Italy, Spain, Germany, and France having reported around 55,000 cases and close to 3,000 deaths over a couple of weeks. The outbreak has also prompted several automakers to close plants in Europe. Things look rather bleak for the auto industry, but Hyundai claims that car sales could hike as consumers will seek an isolated mode of transportation. But are new cars produced in Europe safe to buy?

Note: According to https://www.worldometers.info/

Panic spreads faster than the novel coronavirus

This, coupled with fake news spread by the media, has caused a lot of panic among the population. People took supermarkets by storm, stocking up on canned food, hand sanitizer, and even toilet paper. Local authorities have shut down institutions and are disinfecting everything from furniture to books. We already know that the virus can survive on surfaces for a while, so a thorough cleaning of frequently touched surfaces is actually a very good measure.

While cars are usually assembled on automated lines by robots, some processes and stages are done by humans. This means that an infected person could spread the virus into a car if he sneezes or coughs. It sounds really serious if you're a hypochondriac, but is this a good reason to panic? No it's not, and you shouldn't!

Buying a new car is as safe as it's ever been

With nearly all of Europe under heavy quarantine, people everywhere are taking precautions toward keeping things clean to avoid the worsening of this pandemic. And needless to say, all new cars are cleaned thoroughly once they leave the assembly line in a normal process before being sent to dealerships.

Sure, cars are then handled by various drivers before being parked in a dealer's lot, but again, everyone is taking more serious measures now and the risk is very low. If anything, a virus might get into a car only if an infected driver visits a dealer for a test drive. Definitely not during the assembly process. In short, buying a new car is as safe as it's ever been.

Buying a new car might be a bit more difficult now

The novel coronavirus prompted all sorts of safety measures all across Europe and the United States and many businesses are no longer operated. The same goes when it comes to deliveries of brand-new vehicles, as many carmakers closed their factories across Europe and shipping is suspended for a few weeks to say the least.

If you're in the market for a brand-new car and you can't wait a few more weeks, it's best that you proceed with caution and go through the process without much contact with other people. Luckily, some automakers have buying programs that don't require a trip to the dealerships so you can have the car delivered at home, which eliminates some of the risks.

Bottom line is, buying a new car may be complicated, but relatively safe, even if the said vehicle was built during the COVID-19 pandemic.