With the recession dramatically influencing auto sales, it isn’t only the Detroit Big Three, or the Japanese Big Three, hurting for more sales. Potential buyers of premium auto brands are also thinking twice about buying new cars.
At the first sign of slipping car sales, many assumed that the luxury car market would be unharmed. It was expected that wealthy buyers would not be subject to the adverse conditions that have kept consumers from visiting Chevrolet, Ford, or Toyota dealerships. Unfortunately, the assumption was not accurate, as luxury car sales, according to Autodata, have fallen about 19 percent this year. From Lexus, to BMW, to Mercedes-Benz, steep losses have been felt, says one Acura dealer Pennsylvania, as fewer buyers can afford the bells and whistles that come with these luxury brands. Even the top echelon of premium brands, such as Bentley and Aston Martin, have also faced global sales slump, which has also fueled substantial layoffs.
While widespread layoffs are occurring, and wealthy types being forced to forgo lucrative bonuses at the very least, it’s no wonder why premium car sales have been hit hard. But while some dealerships may be struggling to get by, others such as Denver Land Rover dealers have the luxury of having a long-established business and a well-known name to get by while sales nationwide suffer.
Although premium new car sales have been shaky at best, there is a silver lining for some. Premium used car sales among New Hampshire Volvo dealers and Philadelphia used car dealers have actually increased. Mercedes Benz Pittsburgh says luxury buyers don’t want to give up the premium brand, but they do want to spend the normal gobs of cash to get it.
The automotive market in general is in a dismal state, and there’s more to it than just building the wrong cars. Many claim that the biggest problem with the Big Three is that they have produced the wrong types of cars. Yet at Los Angeles harbor, loads premium cars remain unsold and awaiting shipment. Luckily for premium automakers, they have the cash to get by. Unfortunately, like the Big Three, many premium dealers may not have that luxury.Volvo Dives into Plug-in Hybrid Technology
Volvo has been struggling amid slumping global sales, but that hasn’t stopped the automaker from diving into research and development. One such as product of its R&D efforts is a new plug-in hybrid that will be due by 2012. Volvo has committed itself to producing a high mileage diesel-electric plug-in hybrid, but it has yet to confirm its plans to sell the vehicle in the U.S.Lexus ES Still Critical to Luxury Brand Lineup
As one Lexus’ most popular models, there will be plenty of drivers that will be happy to see a revamped Lexus ES 350 coming to showrooms later this month. While it may not be a full redesign, the updating certainly brings needed enhancements.Euro Civic Type-R Teases U.S. Consumers
In the U.S., Honda is mostly known for producing somewhat conservative, economical cars. However, the image of Honda outside of the States is far more performance oriented. This is attributed to a range of models that can be had overseas, but remain unavailable here.