"I'll be back!"
Posted on 10/02/2005 8:14:07 AM PDT by grundle
October 1, 2005
Auto dealers ditch SUVs for fuel-efficient vehicles
Knight Ridder News
GLAN FALLS, N.Y. - After charging through Hudson Falls last week with the machismo of a movie star cruising Hollywood Boulevard, auto shop owner Jeff Boyer jumped down from behind the wheel of his hulking 2003 Hummer H2.
"The Hummer may be the 'ride' that really turns heads, but the real story is the gas," he said, waving his arms in the air. "It sucks up the gasoline, so now I only drive it for occasional joy rides."
With post-Katrina gas prices ranging from $2.80 to $3.89 per gallon and his brutish SUV's fuel economy at only 8 to 10 miles per gallon - which means up to $135 for a fill-up - Boyer's almost ready to put his paramilitary machine up for sale, he said.
He's not alone in his disillusionment.
Auto dealers in the region report that many are ditching their gas-guzzling full-size SUVs, pickups and sedans and are seeking out fuel-efficient vehicles.
Just ask Glens Falls Toyota owner Howard Lebowitz.
The day Hurricane Katrina sent gas prices soaring, his dealership was flooded with inquiries about fuel-efficient cars, Lebowitz said.
"As we watched them change the gas prices across the street, people were walking in the door, calling and e-mailing inquires about fuel-efficient cars," he said. "It was unbelievable."
Within days, the dealership had a two-month waiting list for its hybrid Toyota Prius, which sips only 1 gallon as it rolls 51 miles.
But with many full-size SUVs burning a gallon for every 8 to 14 miles driven, people are shunning them, and they're prices are plunging, dealers reported.
In the used car market, buyers are avoiding them like the plague, said Don Eletto of Queensbury's Don Eletto Motor Sales.
"The prices of the big rigs are dropping like crazy, and you can now get them real cheap, while prices of hybrids and fuel-efficient cars are skyrocketing," he said, referring to sales at the region's wholesale car auction, the Northway Auto Exchange in Clifton Park.
Tim Higgins said he's seen giveaway prices there on some big vehicles, while interest in his new Honda civics and hybrid models, which boast 40 and 50 miles per gallon respectively, are booming.
"You can bring a full-size SUV or pickup to the auction, and you may not even get a bid," Higgins said. "But our 'hits' on our hybrid Web pages have tripled in recent weeks."
David Printy of Mother Automotive agreed that his customers are increasingly looking to save money on gasoline.
"To save money, people are parking their full-size vehicles and are buying low-cost commuter cars to rack up the miles on," he said.
The problem is that too many people buy Hummers to "turn heads" instead of to own a vehicle that can go anywhere, anytime in any weather. The only added benefit to owning an H2 is that it pisses off liberals.
I bet you can pick up a Ford Excursion pretty cheap. I think its bad gas mileage is only eclipsed by the M1A1 Abrams tank.
The only added benefit to owning an H2 is that it pisses off liberals.
Because the libs are driving H1's?
"I'll be back!"
LMAO!!
Who has time to go cruising anyway? Oh wait, he drives the H2 on joyrides, I am sure to pick up chics. Like you said.....
I haven't seen any massive decline in SUV's here in central Indiana. People are just curtailing their driving a bit and allowing more in the budget for gaasoline.
I still love my 1992 Nissan pickup.
266,000 miles and still rolling.
Not much to look at, but it has made me money all those years.
Haha! You think he knew what you were talking about? Probably a hybrid himself.
Like the Abrams, I believe the fuel consumption of the Excursion is expressed in gallons per mile.
CAFE standards, with their "utility vehicle" loophole are what gave us the SUV to begin with. They were responsible for the disappearance of the station wagon, which was required to be reckoned when calculating the coporate average, while "trucks" were exempt. So gov meddling actually caused the current state of affairs. As for the free market, once again American auto makers are caught with their collective pants around their ankles, while forward-thinking Japanese companies are prepared. It's like the 70's all over again
Bingo!
Sure looks like it. With one exception, I hope. When the small trucks first came in and were killing the American auto makers, they appealed to the government for help. In response, the government slapped a $500 tariff on each imported truck. I remember Ford, in particular, immediately jacked up their truck prices by $400 and blandly called it "competitive pricing" when asked for their rationale. Since I was in the market for a small truck at the time, I lost my "support American corporations" attitude then.
190,000 miles on it.
Hey Wolf,
In these parts we consider that Low Mileage.
:>)
Visited a Land Rover dealership last week ... the sales rep acted like he hadn't talked to anyone in weeks. Must be real lonely selling gas guzzlers these days ... almost feel sorry for them.
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