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Drivers opt for smaller vehicles as fuel costs increase
By Andrew Amelinckx
COLUMBIA COUNTY— The ever-escalating price of gasoline has started to affect local automobile dealers, from slumping truck and SUV sales to the increased demand for smaller cars with good gas mileage.
Almost all the major automakers reported steep sales declines for June. The overall market fell 18.3 percent, according to Autodata Corp.
June sales at General Motors (GM) dropped by almost 18 percent, with truck sales down 16 percent.
“Sure, its affecting truck sales,” said Dave Barden, general manager for Rosetti Chevrolet in Chatham. “Cars are selling, as long as they get decent gas mileage and most of ours do.”
GM owns Chevrolet.
According to Barden, a large percentage of his dealership’s sales were in trucks. “It’s definitely off,” he said.
Barden said he believed the trend away from trucks and SUVs would continue “as long as gas prices are increasing.”
“Anything big and with poor gas mileage isn’t selling,” said Ed Habeck, owner of Kinderhook Toyota, which is currently located on Route 9H in Kinderhook.
Habeck said he saw an increase in sales — unusual in this market. But, he said, the Toyota Corporation saw a slump in June along with everyone else.
Toyota sales for June shrank 21 percent. The car manufacturer was caught with too few of their smaller models, including the Prius, Corolla and Yaris.
Prius sales were hurt by a battery shortage, while sales of the Corolla and Yaris suffered because of plant capacity.
However, Habeck said, “We’ve seen a big jump not just in the Prius, but Yaris and Corolla as well,” in Kinderhook.
With the Prius, Habeck said, demand is outstripping production of the cars’ batteries.
The Toyota Prius is a hybrid electric automobile and the most fuel-efficient car sold in the U.S., according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
“Anything that gets 30 miles per gallon is going to be in high demand,” said Habeck.
Both GM and Ford have announced plans for new subcompact vehicles, but production is still at least two years away.
Bo Berzal, sales manager for Village Dodge on Route 66, said, “We have plenty of trucks.”
Chrysler LLC, which owns Dodge, had a 36 percent drop in sales in June. Its truck sales dropped 30 percent.
Berzal said he believed that potential car buyers are waiting to see what the future holds before buying a new car. “They don’t know what it’s going to be so they’re holding off,” he said.
Berzal said he has seen a lot of larger vehicles being offered in trade, but in some cases the owners have “negative equity” and can’t get rid of them.
“It means they owe more than what the vehicle is worth in today’s market,” he said, “They’re still behind the eight-ball.”
On the other end, he said, those wishing to trade in their “four-cylinders” have a “chunk of gold in (their) hands.”
Berzal said sales of their four-cylinder models have been up, including the Dodge Caliber as well as the Avenger.
He said he believes the market will continue to languish as long as the price of gas continues to rise. “At least until November,” he said, adding that “it can’t get any worse, well technically it can. Hopefully we’re at the bottom of the cycle.”
To help boost sales, Chrysler said it would extend its offer of $2.99 per gallon gas through July 31. It was scheduled to expire July 7. The car company pays the difference between $2.99 and the pump price for 12,000 miles a year under the offer.
The promotion started in May, but car sales at Chrysler still fell by almost half.
The only major car company to see a sales increase in June was Honda — slightly over 1 percent. Honda car sales were up nearly 20 percent, while truck sales were down 24 percent.
Even with market fluctuations Kinderhook Toyota is doing well enough to continue with its expansion plans. The business is building a new 30,000-square-foot facility in Ghent, three miles from its current location.
“We started construction last week,” said Habeck. “Toyota’s logo: Moving forward.”
Habeck seems to be taking the market fluctuations with a calm reserve.
“We’ve been around for over 40 years. We’ve seen a lot of fluctuations in the market. It’s just a ripple in the waves,” he said.
Almost all the major automakers reported steep sales declines for June. The overall market fell 18.3 percent, according to Autodata Corp.
June sales at General Motors (GM) dropped by almost 18 percent, with truck sales down 16 percent.
“Sure, its affecting truck sales,” said Dave Barden, general manager for Rosetti Chevrolet in Chatham. “Cars are selling, as long as they get decent gas mileage and most of ours do.”
GM owns Chevrolet.
According to Barden, a large percentage of his dealership’s sales were in trucks. “It’s definitely off,” he said.
Barden said he believed the trend away from trucks and SUVs would continue “as long as gas prices are increasing.”
“Anything big and with poor gas mileage isn’t selling,” said Ed Habeck, owner of Kinderhook Toyota, which is currently located on Route 9H in Kinderhook.
Habeck said he saw an increase in sales — unusual in this market. But, he said, the Toyota Corporation saw a slump in June along with everyone else.
Toyota sales for June shrank 21 percent. The car manufacturer was caught with too few of their smaller models, including the Prius, Corolla and Yaris.
Prius sales were hurt by a battery shortage, while sales of the Corolla and Yaris suffered because of plant capacity.
However, Habeck said, “We’ve seen a big jump not just in the Prius, but Yaris and Corolla as well,” in Kinderhook.
With the Prius, Habeck said, demand is outstripping production of the cars’ batteries.
The Toyota Prius is a hybrid electric automobile and the most fuel-efficient car sold in the U.S., according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
“Anything that gets 30 miles per gallon is going to be in high demand,” said Habeck.
Both GM and Ford have announced plans for new subcompact vehicles, but production is still at least two years away.
Bo Berzal, sales manager for Village Dodge on Route 66, said, “We have plenty of trucks.”
Chrysler LLC, which owns Dodge, had a 36 percent drop in sales in June. Its truck sales dropped 30 percent.
Berzal said he believed that potential car buyers are waiting to see what the future holds before buying a new car. “They don’t know what it’s going to be so they’re holding off,” he said.
Berzal said he has seen a lot of larger vehicles being offered in trade, but in some cases the owners have “negative equity” and can’t get rid of them.
“It means they owe more than what the vehicle is worth in today’s market,” he said, “They’re still behind the eight-ball.”
On the other end, he said, those wishing to trade in their “four-cylinders” have a “chunk of gold in (their) hands.”
Berzal said sales of their four-cylinder models have been up, including the Dodge Caliber as well as the Avenger.
He said he believes the market will continue to languish as long as the price of gas continues to rise. “At least until November,” he said, adding that “it can’t get any worse, well technically it can. Hopefully we’re at the bottom of the cycle.”
To help boost sales, Chrysler said it would extend its offer of $2.99 per gallon gas through July 31. It was scheduled to expire July 7. The car company pays the difference between $2.99 and the pump price for 12,000 miles a year under the offer.
The promotion started in May, but car sales at Chrysler still fell by almost half.
The only major car company to see a sales increase in June was Honda — slightly over 1 percent. Honda car sales were up nearly 20 percent, while truck sales were down 24 percent.
Even with market fluctuations Kinderhook Toyota is doing well enough to continue with its expansion plans. The business is building a new 30,000-square-foot facility in Ghent, three miles from its current location.
“We started construction last week,” said Habeck. “Toyota’s logo: Moving forward.”
Habeck seems to be taking the market fluctuations with a calm reserve.
“We’ve been around for over 40 years. We’ve seen a lot of fluctuations in the market. It’s just a ripple in the waves,” he said.
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