We’re buying big vehicles again

CEDAR RAPIDS - The current low gas prices definitely play a part in the story of increased truck and SUV sales for car dealerships across the nation. Consumer confidence - now that more people are employed - doesn't hurt, either.

But other factors such as ongoing manufacturer redesign efforts and work on increasing fuel efficiency also may fortify consumer confidence and desire to purchase a new vehicle.

'I believe our lifestyle definitely drives the SUV traffic,” said Dave Wright of Dave Wright Nissan. 'We're active people. Our kids are in activities - band, choir, football, baseball camps, traveling teams - you name it. It can be done year-round, and that means hauling people and their stuff. The SUVs give a nice fit for that.”

Wright said the Subaru sport utility vehicles are selling well right now, but he said the term 'SUV” is more generic.

'We now call them crossovers,” he noted. 'The SUVs we were accustomed to were frame-on-frame vehicles, and these crossovers today are more of a car chassis, so they ride better. It's a whole new concept.

' ...

Both Nissan and Subaru adhere to 5-year redesign plans,” he explained. 'They refresh at four years, and the fifth year they bring out a complete new redesign.”

Fuel economy for the SUVs has seen at least a 25 percent improvement as a result, Wright said.

Andy Burns, new car director for Pat McGrath Chevyland, said the Chevrolet Equinox SUV is an extremely popular seller for them right now.

'We ...

will sell, on an average, 25 to 30 Chevrolet Equinox vehicles each month,” Burns said.

'It seems like most people gravitate toward wanting to sit up higher when they drive,” he added. 'It could be they feel safer in being able to see better.”

Dan Lynch of Lynch Ford Chevrolet in Mount Vernon said four of the top five sellers for his business are either a pickup truck or an SUV.

'The No. 1 selling vehicle in the country for the last 30 years has been the F-series pickup,” Lynch said. 'It's kind of our bread and butter.”

Ford redesigned the F-150, making it the first all-aluminum truck. The body is made out of high-strength, military grade, aluminum alloy and a high-strength steel frame, reducing the truck's overall weight by 700 pounds, increasing fuel efficiency by 20 percent over the previous year's F-150.

It's the same on the Chevy side for his business Lynch said, noting that

On the truck sales side, the Chevy Silverado pickup has been Lynch's best-selling vehicle in that group.

'Rounding out the top sellers in the SUVs for us then are the Suburban, the Tahoe, The Traverse and the Equinox,” he added.

Lynch said he believes cheaper gas prices have some affect on the upswing in sales, but doesn't believe it to be the real driving force behind them. Loyalty, he said, is the key.

'When an F-150 is traded in,” he noted, 'it is traded in for another F-150 the majority of the time.”