Anyone with even half an ear to the ground knows that high fuel prices are causing consumers to think twice about which vehicle to buy or which car to take. Leave it to industry insiders, however, to be the folks least likely to understand what is happening beyond the "steel tower". Virtually every recent issue of Automotive News, the mouthpiece of the auto manufacturing industry, has some comment about whether the run of high gas prices is affecting buyers' attitudes. Yet, there is no consistency -- even within the same issue.
Take, for example, the June 7, 2004 issue of AN. An article on page 4 headlines with, "Dealers say costly fuel is changing sales, but automakers disagree". The piece details how dealers are reporting declines in sales of large SUVs and are scrambling to get more fuel efficient vehicles on their lots. The sales and marketing departments of the Big Three, however, stoutly deny that fuel prices are having any effect on buying preferences. GM's market and industry analysis executive director, Paul Ballew, claims that gas prices would have to rise to $2.50 to $3.00 per gallon before purchasing decisions would change, according to GM's research.
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Posted by E L Eversman on December 04, 2004 at 07:14 AM in Automotive Industry, Case Law, Collision Repair Commentary, Consumer Friendly, Diminished Value, Insurance, NHTSA, Science, Statutes & Legislation, Useful Knowledge, Warranties, Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)