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Hybrid Vehicles Does the current situation affect hybrid sales more?
108 messages, Last post on May 20, 2009 at 1:35 PM
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Replying to: andre1969 (May 12, 2009 6:27 am) No more of a factor than it was a factor for any other fuel-efficient car - not just the Prius. When gas prices go down significantly, fickle American car buyers have historically gone for luxury and size, and that has changed a little bit. People understand now that we are not going to have cheap gas all the time, forever. And I think 5 years ago the majority of Americans DID believe that cheap gas was here forever. |
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Sales not being affected by recession for the new Insight in Japan: Insight Becomes First Hybrid Vehicle to Rank as Best-Selling Vehicle* in Japan
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Replying to: larsb (May 12, 2009 7:11 am)
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Replying to: gagrice (May 11, 2009 8:08 am) Last April was one of the greatest months in sales for all hybrids as the public realized that gas prices were going to go out of sight. In March of last year an astute buyer could and did get a 'deal' on a Prius. 45 days later by May 5th every Prius in the US was gone. Pffttt snapped up during the month of April. Thus to compare any month to last April is disingenious, last April was an aberation. It's not worth looking at any figure except the year over year totals. That's all the matters. I've been doing this for 35 yrs in three different industries. The shortest time frame that matters is a quarterly comparison. Even that's too short. That's the way sales are. See my post above about why total sales are down last year and this year. IT'S INTENTIONAL!!!!! No spin those are the facts. |
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Replying to: explorerx4 (May 11, 2009 4:06 pm) the reason sales did not incease as gas prices went up was due to supply. this was well documented. unit prices were way up. eco 101. Yes this is precisely the case. The sudden spike in fuel prices caught every maker unawares and autos/trucks are not products that you can turn on and off at the whims of the marketplace. The sudden spike in fuel prices sucked every last unit out of every dealer in the US and supply never caught up with deman until Oct 1....when the market suddenly turned 180 deg and headed south falling off a cliff. All during last summer when there was hyper-demand every store was short of supply meaning every store missed sales. This was exacerbated during the summer by a dollar that fell like a rock so Toyota didn't try to ship anything extra to meet the hyper-demand. Then buyers stopped buying when the banks began failing and credit dried up temporarily. Weird year. |
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Replying to: gagrice (May 12, 2009 7:34 am) I have never heard THAT before. I tend to doubt that source. Maybe they just found a few owners in Japan who are not happy and made an assumption for the whole country? Where is that link? But if true, it's reasonable in a WAY, because of the style of driving and the roads in Japan, and probably the pricing issue. Most Japanese people don't need a midsize car - they get along with smaller cars. The Insight got there first because it's: 1. New 2. Cheaper |
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Replying to: lemko (May 12, 2009 6:04 am) On top of that the US$ fell like a rock versus the JY so Toyota pulled back the supply of exports for the 2nd half of last year and all of this year.
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Replying to: gagrice (May 12, 2009 7:34 am) The Insight II has had a free playing field for these last two months and next as the Gen 2 Prius winds down and the Gen 3 ramps up. Revisit this at the end of the year. |
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Replying to: kdhspyder (May 12, 2009 9:38 am) |
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Replying to: gagrice (May 12, 2009 1:08 pm) Gary says, "Toyota has put all its marbles into the wrong markets. The US buyer is fickle. And the meager Prius sales when gas is cheap, attests to my belief." Gas prices and Prius sales do not have a direct correlation: Sales in 2004: 53,991 Avg gas price 2004: $1.895 Sales in 2005: 107,897 Avg gas price 2005: $2.314 Gas prices went up, and so did Prius sales. Sales in 2006: 106,971 Avg gas price 2006: $2.618 Gas prices went WAY up, and Prius sales BARELY dipped. Especially notice the data in the last two years: Sales in 2007: 181,221 Avg gas price 2007: $2.843 Gas prices went up, Prius sales went WAY up. Sales in 2008: 158,884 Avg gas price 2008: $3.299 Gas prices went WAY up, Prius sales went DOWN. There is no direct linear relationship between gas prices and Prius sales. And people do not ONLY buy Priuses when gas prices are high. People stopped buying Priuses when ALL car sales dropped. Not merely because gas prices came down.
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