Small car sales slipping

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: geeman789
Originally Posted By: brandini
How small does the SUV category go these days? We talking a Mazda CX5? Because yea people would buy one, it gets almost 40mpgs and can still carry the family.


A friend bough a cx-5 ... she likes it, mostly, but her big complaint... mileage. 40 mpg...? Try 22 , maybe...

On the highway, with no air cond. on, at 50 mph, then maybe you could approach 40 mpg, but even that seems a stretch.

I think the perception that SUV's are getting better mileage has been helping to sell them too. SUV's are actually getting a bit better mileage as well which doesn't hurt either.
Also the article is talking just about Ford's sales, and perhaps the DCT's rep in their small cars is scaring people away too.

 

[OneEyeJack]

I like the term "station wagon".

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: geeman789
Originally Posted By: brandini
How small does the SUV category go these days? We talking a Mazda CX5? Because yea people would buy one, it gets almost 40mpgs and can still carry the family.


A friend bough a cx-5 ... she likes it, mostly, but her big complaint... mileage. 40 mpg...? Try 22 , maybe...

On the highway, with no air cond. on, at 50 mph, then maybe you could approach 40 mpg, but even that seems a stretch.


Is she a gas pedal on/off type of person?

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: exranger06
Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
Now that gas is under $2, idiots are buying bigger and bigger vehicles.



You missed the article--people were buying SUV's before the drop in gas prices.

Yes, but, from the part you quoted in your first post:
Quote:
and we’ve seen the acceleration of that in the second half of the year because of fuel prices primarily.

So there ARE a lot of people who are abandoning small cars for larger cars just because of gas prices.


Touché. Reading fail on my part then.

Pop is right too, I know when I bought my truck I didn't expect gas prices to drop either, and accepted its resulting cost per mile.

 

[geeman789]

Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Originally Posted By: geeman789
Originally Posted By: brandini
How small does the SUV category go these days? We talking a Mazda CX5? Because yea people would buy one, it gets almost 40mpgs and can still carry the family.


A friend bough a cx-5 ... she likes it, mostly, but her big complaint... mileage. 40 mpg...? Try 22 , maybe...

On the highway, with no air cond. on, at 50 mph, then maybe you could approach 40 mpg, but even that seems a stretch.

I think the perception that SUV's are getting better mileage has been helping to sell them ...


You said it.... PERCEPTION of better mileage....

I just looked up some curb weights for Toyota..

Yaris ... 2300 lbs

Rav4 ... 3500 lbs

4Runner ... 4500 lbs

A RAV4 is not a small vehicle anymore, and it doesn't get small car mileage either... surprise.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: Jimkobb
I like small cars . And I like that I`m paying even less now for gas. And I like my 14 Corolla. All that being said even now with gas prices being lower than a year ago I would still have bought the Corolla. Plus I`m willing to bet that these prices are only temporary.


I like small cars too. I've never really warmed up to my Camry. Just feels too big for normal everyday driving. Which is weird since I have my truck... but I like small cars. They feel more nimble, and parking becomes something that I absolutely don't have to think about.

I'm keeping my eye open right now for my next car. But I'm afraid the prices haven't quite come down far enough... the best deals might be in another couple months if not until this summer?
Good tires, struts, and a strut bar will tighten that Camry up. Wider tires help, as to plastic rear suspension bushings instead of the quickly wearing rubber.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: CT8
Like when I go to the rifle range and some youngsters even the gangsta wannabes bring out a 12 ga shot gun sporting only a a pistol grip. I holster my gun step back and watch the shooter fire off the pistol grip shot gun . As always I watch the shooter get popped in the face and sometimes get a bloody nose from the recoiling shot gun. I could have told him what would happen . Except I enjoy the show.
I get a kick out of the yabbos who think a .44 mag wheel gun should be their first purchase.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
Originally Posted By: supton
Quote:
“SUVs were growing before gas prices fell


I think that people in general had become accustom/conditioned to $3.00+/gallon gas, and budgets had started to compensate for it.


Poor, short term thinking, Ill unfortunately wager...

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Good tires, struts, and a strut bar will tighten that Camry up. Wider tires help, as to plastic rear suspension bushings instead of the quickly wearing rubber.


Wider tires cost mpg, no? Also, it's the wife's car: unless if she complains, I'm not touching it. I don't think she warmed up to the stiffer struts I put onto my Jetta (I liked it, car felt better).

There is a bit wallow-ness to it, but all around it just seems... not my style. The corners of the car are too far away, I can't see over the trunk real well while backing up. The manual transmission is good that it's a manual--but it ends there, as it's no real joy to drive. I sit too low in the seat and always feel like I've added 10-20 years to my age--I can't put my elbow up on the door, it winds up feeling too high.

It does the job but I've always been happy to get back into my Jetta. At least until lately. Now even the kids are complaining about the noise in my car--and they're not riding in it on the highway, like I do.

Decent highway cruiser though. I don't get good mpg in it but the wife does, I think mid 30's in summer.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I'm not surprised gas is cheap, for now. So people buy SUVS, Pick Ups, and bigger cars. Small car sales have been declining for a while, lower gas prices is just the icing on the cake.
And "smaller" cars continue to get larger. I saw a new RAV 4 the other day which was as big as my brother's first 4 Runner. The latest Accord is Avalon size.

True. Current Honda Civic is much larger than 1984 Accord, about the same size as 1991 Accord.

Current Accord is about the same size as Avalon of previous generation and larger than the first generation Avalon.

 

[Nate1979]

These categories, small car and SUV are getting less and less relevant when the SUV is built on the same platform, have similar weight, and similar MPG. Example for the Ford Escape/Focus platform (just examples pulled from Ford website):
Ford Escape ~32mpg max (highway, FWD), weight ~3500lb
Ford Focus ~37-40mpg max (highway, depends on options) weight ~3000lb

SUV's have a small weight and mpg penalty.

 

[sciphi]

Problem is that nobody can meet SUV MPG ratings. Most folks can beat small car MPG ratings with a little work. Moving a taller, heavier vehicle over a real road with real air or even wind should take more energy than moving a shorter, lighter vehicle. EPA estimates obtained from heavily massaged exhaust gas measurements can be rigged pretty easily.

 

[dlundblad]

Could it be more and more people are relocating closer to their jobs? Chance are, the public schools would be better too. Less commuting would mean an economic vehicle would be less necessary. Not bashing America whatsoever, but folks like their cars big. Low fuel prices aren't helping either.

Locally, small towns are slowly dying. Local professional jobs (and by local, I mean less than a 30 mile radius) are few and far between and school admissions are dropping significantly by the year.

 

[supton]

Good question.

Ironically I don't want to move, commute is killing me (time not so much cost); but our kids have like class sizes of 12 kids. At least in elementary school (several towns share middle and high, so different story there). I have a strong incentive to stay, and commute. In that vein I kinda like having a big ole truck for the weekend, and a small commuter for commuting.

But living closer to work is usually a net win. But owning a too large vehicle starts becoming a pain for parking.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Problem is that nobody can meet SUV MPG ratings. Most folks can beat small car MPG ratings with a little work. Moving a taller, heavier vehicle over a real road with real air or even wind should take more energy than moving a shorter, lighter vehicle. EPA estimates obtained from heavily massaged exhaust gas measurements can be rigged pretty easily.


My parents and I can beat the EPA ratings on their 2013 Escape ... it's super easy (don't even have to try) when running premium gas.

Best I got on a trip with it - on 87 - was 30.

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: sciphi
Problem is that nobody can meet SUV MPG ratings. Most folks can beat small car MPG ratings with a little work. Moving a taller, heavier vehicle over a real road with real air or even wind should take more energy than moving a shorter, lighter vehicle. EPA estimates obtained from heavily massaged exhaust gas measurements can be rigged pretty easily.


My parents and I can beat the EPA ratings on their 2013 Escape ... it's super easy (don't even have to try) when running premium gas.

Best I got on a trip with it - on 87 - was 30.


Two caveats with that: One, most folks want to run the initially cheapest fuel possible even though premium may be cheaper per mile. Two, depending on the trim, 30 mpg is either the EPA highway rating or just a hair over. And that was "best". So I was wrong with a blanket statement that "nobody" can get EPA. I'll change it to "few people" can see EPA on these small SUV's when running regular.

 

[Doog]

Now is a good time to double down on a Prius or Hybrid. You will get a screaming deal and when the Saudis are done bankrupting the frackers and gas is back at $4 you'll be ready. I give cheap gas 6-12 months

 

[grampi]

How long will it be before all the knuckleheads that are running out and buying gas hogs again before they start biching about the cost of gas after it goes back up to normal levels (which it most certainly will)?