Posted on 06/05/2017 10:44:07 AM PDT by Lorianne
Industry experts had lowered their forecasts for May auto sales, having been overoptimistic every month this year, always figuring that there would be a year-over-year sales increase, when in fact sales fell every month. So for May, they became practically gloomy, but not gloomy enough.
J.D. Power and LMC Automotive forecast that new vehicle sales in May would inch up 0.5% year-over-year to 1.54 million cars and light trucks. Edmunds predicted that sales would edge up 0.3% to 1.53 million units. And Kelley Blue Book forecast that sales would be essentially flat year-over-year at 1.525 million:
And this is what the industry got:
•Total new vehicle sales fell 0.5% in May to 1.519 million light cars and trucks, according to Autodata (number of vehicles sold and delivered by dealers to their customers, or delivered by automakers to their large fleet customers).
•The fifth month in a row of year-over-year declines.
•Year-to-date sales are down 2%.
•New car sales plunged 9.3% to 548,000 and are down 11% year-to-date.
•New truck sales rose 6% to 935,170 and are up 4.7% year-to-date. After the April disaster for pickups, Chevy dealers offered discounts of $12,000 on Silverado pickups and Ford dealers offered discounts of $10,000 or more on 2017 model-year F-series pickups and over $14,000 on 2016 F-series pickups – which shows just how fat profit margins are on pickups.
•The Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate of sales (SAAR) in May fell 3% year-over-year, to 16.66 million light cars and trucks, the third month in a row below the 17-million mark.
•The 71 days’ supply of unsold vehicles on dealer lots was the highest since July of collapse-year 2009.
•Even the highest incentives for any May, estimated at nearly $3,600 per unit sold, could not stem the sales declines.
SNIP
The best pickup I ever had was a ‘63 Chevy 3/4T long bed fleetside with a big 6 cyl engine and 3 on the tree. I could haul 3,000 lbs on it like nobody’s business. Then I changed occupations and never needed a truck after that.
You are way wrong on this one. All the ones that want this cheap basic truck are the ones that buy one every 15 or 20 years. I hear this all the time, but reality is that nobody wants a base anything. If this were true, they’d all be building them already.
What’s kept me out is this driverless car thing. Some nuts are proposing non human driving areas in as little as five years.
Plus though i usually like sports cars, the mazda 6 my wife got 10 years ago when I was sick runs great still.
Took a 35 mph hit in the back while we were standing still with almost no damage.
Plus what you’re telling me now, more confuse than ever and don’t know if i want a new bill.
Looking for new. He anywhere around nyc?
Or were you joking? :)
Thanks.
What to get has been an issue. Not 35 anymore. Trying to find an age appropriate car for a 49 year old that I still like.
I’m incredibly immature :), but don’t want my car to show it!
Nope, we’re in Florida panhandle, Destin/Ft. Walton Beach...................
New cars have engine designs that used to be found only in Formula 1 cars to meet pollution and mileage requirements. Plus the 8 - 9 speed automatics.
This has to adding somewhere between $5000 - $10000 in costs for the engines and transmissions to new cars, if not more.
It also makes them impossible to repair when they break down: they'll have to be re-manufactured.
This is why we are seeing V-6 trucks with turbochargers, aluminum bodies, 10 speed gear boxes, etc.
And its arguably worse for passenger cars. This is why we're seeing all sorts of 'toy' cars out there.
The auto companies don't have high margins on these toys. So they mark up the luxury vehicles...and truck's are today's luxury vehicle.
CAFE was enacted for ONE reason - to wean ourselves off of OPEC. But suggest scrapping it today, in the midst of an energy revolution, and you're branded as an environmental heretic.
About $40,000 for an F150 truck and you think that is a good deal? Wow...Too rich for my taste. Good luck with that.
Auto manufacturers have to subsidize by many thousands the purchase of hybrids/electric vehicles to get their fleet fuel economy to today's requirements.
How many hybrids do you have to sell to “offset” a low mileage pickup? As the hybrids aren't selling and still use fuel, many car companies are sending many thousands to Elon Musk and having him be their offset.
So you are paying Elon Musk $5,000 to buy that pickup. Isn't life grand for him?
$18k, remove radio,AC,PS. Install 4cyl around 150 cid. Guess what that is my 1991 GMC Somona.... Better make it $15k.
Ford Fusion Sport and Ford Taurus SHO are relatively incognito.
Audis don’t attract as much attention as other lux brands. SQ5 is a hot rod smaller SUV that isn’t noticeably flashy.
I think it might take a little while, but President Trump will help auto sales.
The Democrats are awful for auto sales.
Makes sense to go there one or two months before the lease is up to make a deal.
I’d like a new F150, but they’ve priced me out of the market...I COULD, but just won’t pay their sky high, loaded up, nickel-dime you to death sticker prices...
The auto makers, with ample help from unions, enviros, and DC, have done it to themselves...
It makes better economic sense for me to keep my Ranger running, it’s paid for, I have a good mechanic to back me up for things I can’t do to it, and good local salvage yards...
Figure I’m good to go for another 100K, and at my age the ol’ girl may be the last truck I need...
Oh my 52K that’s insane.
After the boating season this year I will sell my boat cause the wifey deserves a new car. I’m thinking Hyundai and getting a sweet deal:-)
Give them a low ball offer on the car. Take it or leave it!
I’ve had great success buying low mile Lexus off eBay from NON Lexus car dealers. You have to be patient, but you can get your car for a lot less.
Your advice is good. I better have plan B set up, which would be to start looking well in advance.
The sad thing is, minus the crash test mandates, you could easily get the mileage because the vehicles would be much lighter. I remember my first Ranger - a 1982 1/2 short bed. It weighed 3000 pounds, had a 2.3 liter 4 cylinder engine and a 4 speed stick (they hadn't developed the 5 speed yet). I regularly got 30 mpg on the highway at 60 mph or so.
Fast forward to the mid 90s and the Rangers had gained 1000 pounds. And the mileage fell proportionately. Recreate that 3000 pound truck and you'd have a mileage king with today's engines. But you would undoubtedly not meet the latest crash tests.
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