SUV demand down. The end of a fad?

unkel

Demand in the US for large SUVs has declined sharply (30%) this year. Will we see something similar over here? Surely the current oil price will have an impact on sales?

joeblogg1

Rubbish

Youre not comparing like with like

USA : SUV = 5-6 Litre

Europe : SUV = 2-4 Litres

Ours are much smaller and less gas guzzling so dont see a problem

I have a 2.7L Rexton and I get 30 mpg on average which is mainly M50 morning and evening driving

USA ones are more equivalent to Range Rovers and Hummers with 5-10mpg being good. If you can afford a Hummer or Range Rover in Ireland the cost of the fuel is not going to bother you

bazz26

Also "diesel" is the word Americans reserve for trains and farm equipment. There are little or no diesel SUVs sold in the US. I would say 80 - 90% of SUVs sold in Europe are oil burners.

Apart from higher pump prices another factor is that it is currently very trendy or PC to buy small hybrids at the moment in the US so that the neighbours can see that your trying to save the Earth.

Probably the opposite over this side of the Altantic.

seamus

Actually, I'd assume it's the beginning of saturation point, rather than the oil issue. There are only a certain amount of people who are going to buy SUVs. Others will just never buy them because of money concerns, environmental concerns, etc etc.
SUVs got a bit of an explosion simply because few people owned them. More of them started being made, at lower prices, and loads of people decided that this was the vehicle for them. Once all of these people have switched, the turnover will revert to standard car sales - people getting rid of old vehicles, and new entrants to the SUV market.

Anan1

unkel wrote:

Demand in the US for large SUVs has declined sharply (30%) this year. Will we see something similar over here? Surely the current oil price will have an impact on sales?

I think so, but I'd say it'll be image rather than fuel costs that will do them in.

mike65

It would be nice to think an outbreak of modesty would happen.

Mike.

RedorDead

No chance of this happening in Ireland anytime soon. SUV sales are growing ahead of the market this year in Ireland and with the launch of the new Audi Q7 and the forthcoming new X5 i cant see this changing at all.

maidhc

I think things are changing.

Interest rates, petrol, and inflation going up will hit everyone, and some quite badly. One simple way for people to save money and not adversely affect the livestyle to which they are accustomed is to buy a frugal car rather a thirsty one.