Large Cars Are Back, Trucks and SUVs Too!

Before gas price spiked last Spring, sales of larger cars, pickup trucks and sport/utility vehicles remained strong, despite gas prices hovering in the $3 per gallon range. But, when prices began to climb just before summer, eventually topping out above $4 per gallon, sales of larger vehicles plummeted.

At that time, analysts announced the death of several segments of cars, trucks and SUVs, saying that high gas prices were permanent and that consumer demand had shifted to vehicles achieving 30 mpg or better. Little did anyone know that gas prices would collapse as summer ended, bringing with it the lowest prices seen in five years.

This shift downward in gas prices has resulted in a shift upward in demand for the largest cars as incentives on these vehicles remain high, giving consumers some of the best deals in recent memory.

"Consumers have reached new levels of concern about the current state of the economy, a fact reflected in the sales numbers we have seen since October," said AutoTrader.com President and CEO Chip Perry. "At the same time, we are seeing new-car shoppers making every dollar count by spending increased time on-line looking at a larger selection of vehicles to find the right car or truck at the right price."

That selection continues to include some of the largest vehicles on the market including all new pickup trucks from Dodge and Ford.

"Shoppers considering a vehicle purchase in 2009 need to know that credit is available," said Perry. "And for many people who put off a vehicle purchase because of economic uncertainty or because of tight credit, there is pent up demand. This is illustrated by the fact that our unique visitor traffic was up about 20% in December of this year compared to December of last year. So people are definitely on-line looking at vehicles, considering their options, building their consideration sets and figuring out what they can afford. I do believe with a new year, easier access to financing and this pent up demand, we should start seeing some positive movement in auto sales in 2009."

This past December, incentives on new cars were among the best ever offered, unusually good even during a time when year end sales are typically the best time to purchase a new car. Vehicle sales for December 2008 were still off by 36%, suggesting that strong incentives will remain in place for at least the first quarter of the year.

Source: AutoTrader.com