Great Deals Abound
September 26, 2014
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March 6, 2015
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Tidbits

  • “The industry continues to show incredible discipline when it comes to incentives.” TrueCar president John Krafcik
  • $31997 is the average new vehicle transaction price with $2293 in factory incentives according to Edmunds.
  • GM’s 2014 market share =17.7% as opposed to 24.5% in 2006.
  • Nearly 1.6 million new vehicles retailed in August yielding an annual rate of 17.5 million new vehicles sold.
  • 5% more new vehicles sold year to date in 2014 than in 2013.
  • More trucks,SUVs and Crossovers have been sold so far this year than cars.
  •  In September inventories of new vehicles is at the lowest level in the past 12 months -this will not lead to increased incentives.
  • Did you know that Maserati Quattroporte and Ghilibi engine blocks are made in Detriot by Chrysler? NO FOOLING!
  • “Fitch Ratings predicts that used car values to further weaken as off lease and fleet volumes rise and sales of new vehicles continue to be strong” according to Used Car News.
  • LeRoy Walker ,the Edsel King, has sold 2300 Edsels to BF Salvage to be crushed. Don’t worry he still has another 300 of them.
  • Some new vehicle stats in terms of days supply: Mini – 36 days supply, BMW SUVs -30 days,Dodge Caravan – 38 days, Jeep Wrangler -43 days,Ford Mustang -34 days,Ford Escape -39 days, Lincoln cars -99 days,Cadillac Escalade -31 days, Chevy Suburban -36 days,Acura TSX -23 days,Honda Accord -34 days,Honda Odyssey -35 days,Land Rover -18 days, Lexus SUVs -33 days,Audi SUVs -20 days,VW cars -104 days,Porsche SUVs -40 days -Automotive News
  • Can you believe that 49.6% of all auto loans for new vehicles are for terms between 73 and 84 months? 6.7% are for terms greater than 84 months.
  • Here are some terms that are used to describe changes to new vehicle product lines:
    Freshen –minor changes to interior and exterior which could include new grille,fascia, seats,lights:
    Re-engineering –significant engineering changes which could include new sheet metal,powertrain,chassis,suspension,console,or interior.
    Redesign– New platform, powertrain,interior and sheet metal, Engine and transmission could be carried over.
  • New – a new nameplate added to the lineup
  • Frank Palluch, Honda’s president of R&D in the US said in at a conference that “a collision free society is within reach” with the development of of advanced safety technologies that will take control of the vehicle at critical times.
    • Robert Hollenshead the largest wholesale dealer arguably in the world has the following take on the current wholesale market:

“I just got done reading a few the automotive economists “expert analysis” of the wholesale market.  I bust into a deep belly laugh when reading the “experts” analysis of the market.  The market has been very difficult to navigate as prices across the board are plummeting with near zero anxiety to buy.  Nobody is hungry for anything as evidenced by the generally horrible conversion rates on the $20,000 up inventory.  I am fairly sure skin in the game players never take them seriously as they are almost categorically wrong but it is surely comical.  That’s not to say that anyone reads this or is influenced by what I say either, but this is straight from the block with skin in the game up to the family jewels.

Out of towners are not buying deep, they are skimming.  On line is very active but quitting about a gee under what the units can be acquired for on the street as trades.  MMR is catching up (going down as sellers are forced to face the market) but not fast enough as the knuckleheads in the dealerships are looking at results from a month or two ago which is utterly off today’s market. “

  • Top Ten new vehicles sold in August 2014 1. Ford F-Series – 68,109 sold,2. Honda Accord – 51,075 sold,3.Chevy Silverado 49,201 sold,4. Toyota Camry – 44,043 sold 5.Ram -43775 sold 6.Toyota RAV4 -35614 sold,7. Honda CR_V – 34,079,8. Honda Civic – 34,032. 9.Toyota Corolla/Matrix 33,088, 10. Nissan Altima- 32,153.
  • Winners and Losers through the first 8 months of 2014 as to % change in sales from 2013: Winners: 1. Maserati up 319% 2.Jeep up 45%, 3.Mitsubishi up 29% 4.Ram up 24% 5. Subaru up 19%. Losers: 1.Mini down 21% 2. Scion down 14%, 3. Volkswagon down 13%, 4.Volvo down 11%, 5. Chrysler down 9%.