Auto authority TrueCar is revealing positive signs in the North American new car market as the numbers for August suggest increases from the previous month, as well as positive changes in year-over-year sales. Retail sales for new cars are up over 3% from July, and nearly 5% from August 2010. Using a Seasonally Adjusted Annualized Rate or SAAR, TrueCar estimates that numbers for this month will be about 12.2 million for total new car sales, up from around 11.5 million last August.
TrueCar staffers called this year’s auto market a “mixed bag,” but the August numbers suggest improvement in supply, as well as consumer confidence, where some experts were worried that new car stay up sales would stay depressed at more extremely low levels due to high unemployment, stagnating wages and worries about the economy. It’s unclear whether how soon the higher new car sales numbers, if they persist, might affect the bloated prices for used vehicles, which have become a lot more expensive this year, causing problems for customers looking for bargains on used models.
An nteresting fact in TrueCar’s report, dated August 25, is that apparently, incentive spending has come dramatically down, 3% from last month and over 3% from last year. That means consumers are still picking up new cars at the lot regardless of less tempting offers from auto makers. As usual, TrueCar provides a list of values for incentive spending by auto maker, where Chrysler and General Motors stand out as the biggest spenders for August. In terms of market share, domestic manufacturers Ford and General Motors remain the strongest competitors with over 15% each of market share in August, followed by Chrysler and Toyota with numbers over 10%.
Along with general data about trends in new car buying, TrueCar also provides customers with facts on individual makers and models. Some of this pricing data can really help when you’re ready to visit a local dealer’s lot. TrueCar provides seasonal reports on which cars are the best buys, and how to pick up a new or late-model car with a great financing agreement based on current incentives from the manufacturer. Combine a reading of TrueCar’s prolific auto reporting with some of your own local research, and you could drive away in one of the best new offers, saving dollars on monthly payments and overall debt.
