–       Edmunds predicts 15.5 million new vehicles will be sold in 2013 and 16.4 million
in 2014.   –       Fake reviews on consumer review websites are being cracked down upon by the NY Attorney
General. There are a number of companies that offer “reputation management” services
that write reviews for dealerships and other businesses to increase their desirability.
This amounts to false advertising and unfair business practices – should we be surprised?   –       Hybrids continue to depreciate faster than gas-fueled versions. Midsize trucks – think Toyota Tacoma – will hold value because some popular models
are currently out of production.   –       Full-size cars are getting a lot of action in the used market.   –       Senior citizens are the most likely consumer group to buy a vehicle these days, 
according to a new study by the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research
Institute.   –       Delinquency on auto loans is steadily declining and repossessions have fallen to
a seven-year low.   –       Domestic vehicles are worth more at auction this year than they were in 2013, gaining
2.6 percent, according to Kelly Blue Book.   –       There are more than 17,500 new car franchised dealers and over 45,000 used car dealers
in the USA.   –       According to ALG there will be 84,000 Accords, 65,000 Camrys and 58,000 Altimas 
that will come off of lease in 2014. That’s a lot of cars in that segment  that 
will enter the market next year.   –       The balance of auto loans in August increased 9.7 percent from last year, rising
from $760.8 billion to […]

  – According to Manheim, used vehicles depreciated 13.7 percent during the last 12 months, but midsize pickup trucks only depreciated 5.1 percent over the same time period   – The average age of a car in America is now a record 11.4 years, according to RL Polk   – Polk also predicts that there will be a 41% increase in one- to five-year-old used cars by 2018   – In the Boston area, including Manchester, NH, there were 760,534 used cars sold in 2012   – In the USA there were 14.6 million vehicles sold at wholesale auctions in 2012   – The age of trade-ins average 6.5 years   – The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) updated itswww.safercar.govwebsite so you can now get up to date info on safety defect investigations, recalls and complaints. They also launched an app for iPhones with this info.   – An analysis of 50 years of crash data by the NHTSA found that younger women drivers (age 21-30) are 25.9 % more likely to die in a crash than males in the same age group. This report is full of interesting data, check it out athttp://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811766.pdf   – “Economists continue to be bullish on the North American auto industry, despite a slow-growing economy, forecasting record production and a surge in sales in the next few years” Automotive News   – Used car loans terms are up to 7 years with the majority of loans being written for 5 years.