Posted on 12/30/2008 7:53:08 PM PST by Libloather
Big is back: As pump prices plunge, SUV sales surge
Buyers with short memories when it comes to gas prices find hot deals on big vehicles.
By Adrianne Jeffries | Special to the Daily Press
December 30, 2008
NEWPORT NEWS - It looks like the Highlander is in and the Prius is out — for now at least.
Trucks and sport utility vehicles will outsell cars for the first time since February, according to a December report by Edmunds.com, which tracks industry statistics.
"Despite all the public discussion of fuel efficiency, SUVs and trucks are the industry's biggest sellers right now as a remarkable number of buyers seem to be compelled by three factors: great deals, low gas prices and winter weather," said Michelle Krebs of AutoObserver.com, a division of Edmunds.com, in a prepared statement.
"It was this summer that customers were concerned about the gas mileage. It hasn't been a topic of conversation lately," said Dave Lawson, the general sales manager at Pomoco Chrysler Jeep Dodge in Newport News. The majority of Pomoco's inventory is SUVs, and its best-selling models are minivans.
Lawson said sales at the dealership are up, although they are still below last year's numbers. Low gas prices and increased consumer confidence are part of the reason, he said. But the real draw for customers is prices.
**SNIP**
Lawson said discounts are biggest for 2008 models like the Dodge Ram 2500, which is currently marked down $12,000.
**SNIP**
Toyota has already slowed production of the industry's flagship hybrid vehicle, the Prius, due to lack of interest and a growing inventory of the once best-selling model, Edmunds.com reported.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailypress.com ...
Economic advantages can also apply to larger cars.
Examples would include less damage in a car-to-car collision, and not only to the car but also to the driver and occupants.
The bottom line could be just a trade-off: Pay extra for fuel, compared to a worst-case scenario of the loss of income and medical expenses from a severe injury (which are more likely to occur in a subcompact). Not to mention, many injuries won’t be remedied by rehabilitation alone.
Sorry, but we will not expand drilling in this country for $40.00 oil.
However, if you want to Drill, Baby Drill, you will need to have oil priced at $90.00 and be willing to pay around $3.00 for a gallon of gas.
You see, people in my industry want to feed their children and we cannot do that with domestic oil at its current price.
Therefore, we will have to go work in Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and a lot of countries that end in "STAN."
You must not like domestic drilling.
how much room will you need in your Corolla when some drunk hits you head on going 60 miles per hour.
That happened one of my best friends going home from work one Friday evening. He was so smashed up they had a closed casket at the funeral. You would be surprised at how much less gasoline you need when you are dead.
Yes, if someone crashes into you going 60 MPH you are dead if you are in a Corolla or an SUV.
How old are you? SUV’s are “mine is bigger battle?” We own TWO - yeah 2....and it has NOTHING to do with size....other than when I was in an accident (not my fault) that did 10K damage to the Explorer....I was sure glad I wasn’t in the little 84 Honda we also owned at the time. Get over yourself.
Just bought the F-350 diesel, to be pick up in the early AM...
Liked the Avalanche, but need a home on the road
But I really do hope that the rice burners fail to leave blood stains, which really do rust metal, on either the rear or front differentials.
Some people never learn.
Middle East disruption,
Lowering OPEC production,
lets burn gas like crazy to drive the price back up to four bucks a gallon!!!
A tree could fall on me at any time or be struck by a meteorite but I've managed to live 63 years so far without either happening.
You are correct.
Hugo Chavez and the Saudi Royal Family love to see Americans driving SUV’s.
$1.37 today in South Jersey
Yeah, it’s true. I am looking at a new truck now. I stopped myself 8 months ago, but gas price doesn’t matter so much, and I like the size!
LOL - add to that: "Thanks Mr. Gore - you jive assed turkey!"
Yep—although I wouldn’t expect oil to rally for at least half a year. Based on the GDP #s predicted for Korea, Japan, China, US, UK, etc demand has gone severely negative.
Yep! If we got all of our energy from the US I wouldn't care what people drove....but very, very few people need a huge SUV. If you want a crossover that gets 26-30 mpg thats cool for most people.
And they closed those plants just in time!
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