OFF-ROAD APPEAL DOWN BUT NOT OUT; SPORT-UTILITY VEHICLE MARKET APPLIES BRAKES.Byline: John Hughes
Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. If Cadillac is going to make a sport-utility vehicle sport-u·til·i·ty vehicle n. Abbr. SUV A four-wheel-drive vehicle with a roomy body, designed for off-road travel. , can the bouncy gas-guzzlers be all that cool anymore? Signs that the fad is fading are starting to emerge. Sales have slowed from last year's pace even with rebates that averaged around 10 percent on some models. Many drivers are trading in their trucks for smoother-riding luxury sedans. Sales of the sport utility that started the craze - the Jeep Cherokee Jeep Cherokee can refer to five different SUV models produced by Jeep from 1974 to the present:
But automakers are confident SUV sales will remain strong and take heart from demand for luxurious models like the Lincoln Navigator. ``I don't think we've seen the peak of SUVs,'' Ford Chairman Alex Trotman said recently. Still, the stunning sales growth is slowing. Overall SUV sales have pulled back to a 13 percent increase this year after rising more than 20 percent in 1996. Ford sales analyst George Pipas said next year's increase might be 5 percent or 10 percent. Auto market researchers J.D. Power and Associates say 19 new models will be introduced between 1999 and 2002, possibly forcing prices and profits lower. ``There's been a lot of product out there for a long time,'' said David Healy, an analyst with Burnham Securities Inc. ``Everybody who was going to buy one already has'' Automakers are trying to hang on to customers' appetite for the rugged trucks by loading them with more comforts and gadgets. The Navigator and the Mercedes-Benz M-Class are some of the hottest sellers. Lloyd Rachor bought a Cherokee to tow his boat in 1988. But now he's married with two children and needs something bigger. ``The Jeep just won't allow for any more seating than just the family,'' said Rachor of Scottsdale, Ariz. ``I'm looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. a few more options.'' Rachor is looking for a more beefy beefy, beefyness 1. in dog conformation, used to describe overdevelopment of musculature in the hindquarters. 2. in cattle, used to designate the desirable physical conformation of a beef animal, but an undesirable character in dairy cattle. Dodge Durango, GMC GMC See: Guaranteed Mortgage Certificate Suburban or Ford Expedition. The shift to pricier models has not been lost on automakers. Cadillac has decided to rush out a luxury model for next fall. GM also plans to start making the full-size Yukon Denali next year, while Ford is said to be working on the biggest one yet, the Crew Wagon, in time for the 2000 or 2001 model year. Even as many are moving to big trucks, other sport-utility vehicle users have defected to cars, forcing automakers to quadruple the level of incentives on many models to spur sales, said Art Spinella, an analyst with CNW Marketing Research CNW Marketing Research, Inc. (CNWMR), known primarily as an automotive marketing research company, is a private company founded in 1984. It operates separate research offices covering the automotive, computer, electronics, housing, and personal investment industries, as well . After driving trucks for years, many have decided they are too expensive to buy and insure, burn too much gas, are tough to store and lack the smooth ride of a car, Spinella said. ``It's not a Caddy A plastic container that holds a CD or DVD disc for added protection. The bare disc is placed in the caddy, and the caddy is inserted into the drive. A caddy is not a jewel case. A jewel case protects the disc for transportation. A caddy protects the disc while reading and writing. , it's not a Deville, it's a big truck with leather interior,'' he said. Analysts say some parts of the SUV market could see above-average growth, including the luxury models and so-called ``mini'' sport utility vehicles This page lists sports utility vehicles currently in production (as of April 2007), as well as past models. The list includes crossover SUVs, Mini SUVs, Compact SUVs and other similar vehicles. . ``Sooner or later, the party is going to be over. But it still has a few more hours to go,'' Healy said. CAPTION(S): Photo, Chart Photo: Full-size sport utility vehicles, such as the Dodge Durango, represent one of the largest growing sectors of the automobile market. Associated Press Chart: SUV sales Sport Utility Vehicle sales since 1990: Source: Ward's Automotive Reports, Ward's Automotive Yearbook |
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