Car Dealer Daily

With the Cash for Clunkers program officially deceased, results indicate that the biggest winners in the program’s aftermath were Japanese and Korean automakers. As the Detroit Big Three suffered from bankruptcy and negative consumer perceptions, it seems that a potential $4,500 rebate wasn’t enough to make help GM or Chrysler gain any market share.

Automakers that found the Cash for Clunkers program particularly beneficial were Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Hyundai as they were able to draw customers away from gas guzzling SUVs and trucks and towards their fuel efficient offerings.

Import manufactures dominated U.S. sales through the duration of the Cash for Clunkers program, which helped drive customers in to showrooms across the country including Nissan O’Fallon. Additionally, cars naturally outsold trucks by a margin of 2 to 1. Out of the Big Three, Ford was the only manufacturer to hold market share during this period, thanks to demand for the Ford Escape compact crossover and the Ford Focus compact.

General Motors and Chrysler both lost ground to import automakers. Initially, the program spurred demand for new domestic models among 2009 Dodge Challenger Dallas dealers. During these initial weeks of the program, compact vehicles and sedans saw strong sales among Cleveland Chevy Cobalt dealers, but poor inventory availability at numerous dealerships hampered sales momentum.

Total auto sales under the Cash for Clunkers program came just shy of 700,000 units. Total rebates came in at $2.87 billion. The rest of the program’s $3 billion will be used for administrated costs. Toyota was the big winner during the Cash for Clunkers program with a reported 19.4 percent market share, with Honda coming in at 13 percent. Chrysler experienced a substantial hit due to dwindling inventories stemming from halted manufacturing operations as well as a lineup saturated by trucks and SUVs. Thanks to robust warranties and unique incentives, Manchester Hyundai saw a healthy spike in first-time Hyundai buyers as well. Despite the program’s ability to spark interest in new cars, Used Cars MA still witnessed healthy demand for affordable late model pre-owned vehicles and expects that demand to only increase in the aftermath of Cash for Clunkers.

Certainly the Cash for Clunkers program created new customers for Japanese and Korean brands. It will be interesting to see whether they will be able to retain these new customers as the Big Three attempt to regain lost ground. Continue reading ‘Japanese, Korean Automakers Benefit From Cash For Clunkers’

Following the intense influx of new car sales that were spurred by the seemingly doomed Cash for Clunkers program, the program has officially ended Monday, leaving many showrooms around the country void of new car buyers once again.

Some in the car business are expecting a bit of a “hangover” effect from the close of the Cash for Clunkers program, where sales will begin to dwindle once again as they were prior to the program’s launch. As of Monday, a dealer specializing in San Luis Obispo used cars says about 625,000 Cash for Clunkers applications were submitted by dealers, accounting for about $2.58 billion.

Although the program has officially ended, the Department of Transportation has given dealers a little more time in getting rebate applications submitted for processing. Meanwhile, many dealers such as Toyota dealers Boston have been inundated with new car sales, particularly since the announcement that the program was to end early.

While some dealers wrap up last minute rebate submissions, others are not looking forward to the program’s aftermath. In a time when car sales have reached dismal lows, some such as World Hyundai Matteson fears that sales could drop off dramatically. Even automotive website Edmunds.com has projected a 40 percent drop in sales immediately following the close of the program.

Inventory is a huge problem for many dealers. There are simply not many cars left in showrooms, leaving prices high for consumers. This will leave many consumers disappointed in the near term, but there is still hope suggests a used Honda Pittsburgh dealer. Automakers are beginning to awake, and are adding shifts at plants to produce more cars and fill depleted inventories among dealers. Additionally, with a new model year approaching, all-new models and fresh products will soon be available to showrooms, to entice buyers that have been disappointed recently by the poor selection on dealer lots. Although a renewed interest in new cars may be coming soon, one used car dealer Washington DC is expecting used car demand to rise again in the near-term.

With new cars and new inventories arriving soon, incentives and car buyers may be plentiful once again. Continue reading ‘Dealers Brace for Cash for Clunkers Aftermath’

Giving money away is certainly one of the best ways to stimulate a frenzy. Case in point is the Cash for Clunkers program, which had quickly burned through its $1 billion budget before Congress approved the allocation of another $2 billion last week to keep the program afloat.

Interestingly, there are apparently more clunkers on the road than many on Capitol Hill initially realized, suggests Saint Paul Ford dealers. As a result, the program was temporarily suspending after only a week of running to allow lawmakers to determine the fate of the program. Ultimately, it was decided that spending more was the appropriate solution.

Cash for Clunkers, officially called Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), provides $3500 to $4500 to those that purchase a new car and trade-in an older clunker. The system is designed to get older, gas-guzzling vehicles off the road and to encourage the sale of fuel efficient vehicles.

Unlike a normal trade-in, old clunkers are required to be destroyed by the dealer. As Honda Service San Luis Obispo explains, car dealers therefore will not be able to take advantage of any remaining value the vehicle might have. While the program has certainly sent plenty of consumers to dealerships, some visitors to Philadelphia Used Cars have suggested that simply throwing away vehicles that may still have value is a bit wasteful – particularly when taxpayers are paying for the vehicle’s destruction.

While some that are not in the market for a new car, and do not own a clunker, may argue that the program has inherent flaws, Cash for Clunkers has nonetheless stimulated new car sales ( at least temporarily). This is important considering new car sales have continued to plummet in recent months. While this program may not help most drivers, it certainly is already helping new car dealers as plenty of consumers are interested in getting $3500 to $4500 off the price of a new car. Continue reading ‘Troubled Cash For Clunkers Program Continues’

Over the past several months, car sales have reached historic lows. Car buyers are not only buying smaller and more efficient vehicles, but due to the weakened economy and high gas prices, consumers are buying few cars overall. Luckily, August auto sales appear to be slightly higher than the dismal July sales figures.

General Motors has seen buoyant auto sales thanks to their latest promotion, offering the average consumer employee pricing. In addition, many analysts are still forecasting an improvement even though overall sales remain down. GM’s latest sales incentive, a popular incentive among Chevy dealers Chicago shoppers, will bring the cost of a GM vehicle about ten percent below the invoice prices, although the discount varies by individual model.

Auto sales in the US reached a 16 year low in July, with most automakers reporting double-digit declines. Despite these sales decreases, Honda and Nissan where among the few automakers this summer that reported sales increases, especially at Nissan Boston MA where the compact Versa was particularly in high demand.

A weakened consumer confidence has kept potential car buyers away from dealer lots in recent months. Those who are buying new cars are looking at fuel efficient vehicles. With the credit crunch, some buyers are
also finding it harder to finance the vehicles that they are looking at says Auto Loans Volvo Passaic.

Most car dealers have seen full-size truck and SUV inventory sit unsold for longer periods of time. With greater interest in smaller vehicles, car dealers are demanding additional compacts and crossovers. In response to demand, automakers have actually reduced production of large trucks and SUVs, and have also held off redesigns of such vehicles. Dealers such as Richmond Used Cars as well as Dodge Financing Memphis are also pushing pre-owned inventory as a more value-packed alternative to new cars. Meanwhile, Toyota Dealers Orange County whose inventory of Prius hybrids are selling strongly as consumers are craving fuel efficiency.

Luckily for car dealers, the price of gas began to decline during the month of August. Although the price of gasoline is still more than 30 percent higher compared to a year ago, the decline will likely help improve auto sales. Although the August ends with some good news, analysts predict that it will be years before the truck market rebounds. Continue reading ‘August Auto Sales Appear Higher’