Used Vehicle

Since January, Mexico has been able to import American and Canadian vehicles that are Model Year (MY) 2007 or older. Up until December, the limit was MY04 or older and in 2009, it was MY99 or older. In 2019, any used vehicle can be imported from the U.S. and Canada, regardless of its age. This is not a new problem: in 2006 and 2007, Mexico imported more used vehicles then it sold new cars.

Although the imports cooled down last year, they gained strength again earlier in 2013. There was an average...

It is no secret that Toyota owes much of its climb in the U.S. market to the success of the Camry. This sedan has been the most popular car in the U.S. every year since 1997, with the exception of 2001 when it was edged out by the Accord, and Toyota has not hesitated to stress the Camry's leadership position in its advertising. The Camry and Corolla represent the core of Toyota's car lineup in the U.S., though obviously there are other successful Toyota cars. The Camry's position at the center...

On the eve of the 2013 New York Auto Show, the media has noted the irony that one of the largest auto shows in the country is taking place in a location where many residents do not even own a car. What is less frequently, if ever, mentioned in the press is the fact that the mix of new cars purchased by New Yorkers who DO own a vehicle is far different from the mix in the rest of the United States.

One of the most vivid differences between new vehicle registrations in New York and the rest of the...

Venezuela was all over the news last week because of the death of its president, Hugo Chávez. President Chávez passed away after a battle against cancer, which included several surgeries in Cuba. What the international media did not pay attention is to a law approved in January that affects the automotive industry.

How would you react if a law determined that all new vehicles from now on should have a sticker price from the first half of 2009? Moreover, could you, the dealer network, afford to...

Ford launched the C-Max hybrid vehicle in September 2012, and dubbed it as America's most affordable hybrid utility vehicle. The C-Max base model is offered at $25,200 and provides consumers with estimated fuel economy of 47/47 (city/highway) MPG. By contrast the primary competitor to the C-Max is Toyota's famous Prius which has a starting price of $24,200 and fuel economy estimates of 51/48 MPG.

With the launch of the C-Max, Ford has launched "The Hybrid Games" campaign which displays a series...

As Toyota announced it has regained the global sales crown, it makes me think of how the Japanese OEM has wasted its chances in the world's fourth largest market. Not everyone is aware that Toyota opened its first factory outside of Japan within Brazil in 1959, a plant that is currently used to produce parts. For decades, the Brazilian market was closed to imports and Toyota only produced a version of its Land Cruiser. It was a great product for rural areas, but Toyota was far behind its...

As someone who works in the auto industry, knowing how long Amercians hold onto their car or truck gives me a sense of what future sales demand may look like--"demand" in terms of selling replacement parts and service as well as understanding factors that impact new vehicle sales. We're all looking for "demand signals," right?

Polk's research shows that as of the second quarter of 2012, the average number of months that both new and used vehicle owners hold onto their vehicles is climbing. Among...

The sales and registration data speak for themselves regarding the success of the Prius. Its sales more than doubled in September, and are up 92% through nine months. However, because three new derivatives of the Prius have come to market in 2012 (the tall 'V' version, the plug-in version and the smaller 'C' version), comparing this year with last is not comparing apples to apples.

But even when you pull out the 2012 deliveries of these three derivatives and look just at the original Prius, its...

The contract between the three "domestic" automakers and the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) expires at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on September 17. The contract covers approximately 18,000 workers. As of this writing, the two sides have not reached an agreement on terms for a new contract and the CAW is threatening to simultaneously strike Canadian operations at all three companies. A list of models assembled in Canada by these companies is shown below.

There is little doubt a strike would...

There is a lot of buzz about the Audi plant that will be built in San José Chiapa, Mexico. The press refers to it as "Audi's first car plant in the Americas," but this is not correct. Audi produced the A3 in São José dos Pinhais, Brazil between 1999 and 2006, in a factory now totally owned by Audi's parent company, Volkswagen. Golf (still in its fourth generation), Fox and SpaceFox are produced there. It was a joint venture between Audi and Volkswagen – Audi had 25% of the factory.

The A3 brought...

My clients often ask the question, "What brands are Saab owners moving into, now that the company is bankrupt?" I decided to do a quick study but before the findings are revealed, I'll provide some brief background information about the brand's development in the U.S.

Saab, the Swedish vehicle company who claimed its cars were "born from jets."

In 1989, General Motors decided to take a 50% stake in the Swedish company to help propel sales in the U.S. market. Throughout the '90s, Saab enjoyed new...

Presenting challenges and opportunities to automotive suppliers

There has been a great deal of media coverage regarding the growth in new vehicle demand in the BRIC countries, with much of that growth taking place in China. This is related to a growing Chinese middle class with growing net worth, which is creating a market of many first-time new vehicle buyers.

However, there has been less attention provided to the rapidly growing light vehicle assembly volumes in China as automakers are expanding...

It was my pleasure to co-present the Polk Inventory Efficiency Awards last night at the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium (GAAS) along with my colleague, Mark Seng. We honored two outstanding aftermarket companies for their process improvements relative to inventory and supply chain efficiency.

This year’s Inventory Efficiency Awards competition was one of the closest yet. Over the past eight years, we’ve recognized some truly great companies that have created outstanding results for their...

GM's consolidation to four brands and Ford's discontinuation of Mercury have helped to create the current environment in which there is an exceptionally high number of "orphan owners" on the road. "Orphan owners" are driving cars or light trucks from a make that no longer markets new vehicles in the U.S. As of last October, the latest date for which Polk has Vehicles In Operation (VIO) data, there were 18,529,769 million "orphan" cars and light trucks on the road from 16 makes. Five metro areas...

If the new 2013 Lincoln MKZ does as well after its launch as it has beforehand, it will be a huge success. At both the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January (concept vehicle) and the New York International Auto Show just a couple of weeks ago (final production version), the media raved about the car. Two compliments were mentioned repeatedly: the car's styling is modern, clean and elegant, and there is virtually no similarity visually between the MKZ and its sister...

Sales of hybrid and electric vehicles remain modest. And, the creation of the infrastructure to support the use of these vehicles is proceeding in fits and starts. In January, hybrid registrations accounted for just 2.29% of all new vehicle registrations in the U.S., down from 2.51% a year ago.

Looking at electric vehicle registrations, the good news is that the January total climbed eight-fold versus January 2011. The bad news is that the 2012 total was just .8% of the industry. Nissan Leaf...

From 2006 through 2009, large vehicles as a percentage of total new vehicle registrations declined 10 percentage points to 20%, though this proportion has stayed constant in the last two years. Going forward, most automotive forecasts predict that large vehicles will retreat even further as gas prices rise and OEMs launch smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles (including hybrids and electric vehicles) to meet the upcoming CAFÉ standards.

Looking at the nine non-luxury mainstream makes, all of them...

Polk and HookLogic have joined their respective areas of expertise to create an innovative and effective way of targeting incentives to the best automotive prospects.

HookLogic has developed a turn-key solution for offering customers a printable coupon that can be redeemed at the dealership for a $25 incentive card. Polk and HookLogic worked together on a test program with a major dealer group and saw that the program doubled the rate of leads clicking and opening the email and printing the...

Polk forecasts that 2012 U.S. light vehicle sales will reach 13.7 million, a 7% increase versus 2011. Other forecasting firms have weighed in with similar predictions, ranging from 13.4 million to 14 million units. What is not included in any new vehicle forecast, from any company, is a forecast of a traumatic event that would profoundly impact the industry. The reason why such an event is not included is because, by definition, such an event cannot be anticipated. But, that is not to say such...

According to my friends at Auto Week (@AutoweekUSA on Twitter), Honda is working with Google, the City of Torrance, CA and Stanford University to conduct tests on a fleet of Honda Fit EVs. In what is being dubbed the "Honda Electric Vehicle Demonstration Program," it sounds as if the goal is to conduct research to understand the challenges and opportunities associated with advancing the Electric Vehicle market. (Image source: Auto Week.)

In a recent blog post The Road is a Vehicle Charger, I...