J.D. Power thinks it has found some more Americans who want to kiss a new fender under the mistletoe. Based on reported transactions for the first 17 days of the month, collected from 8900 dealers, J.D. Power now projects a December SAAR of 11.2m units, Reuters reports. This would be up 9 percent from a truly dismal December a year earlier, which saw a sickening SAAR of 10.3m vehicles. In eggnog-powered exuberance, J.D. Power calls the sputtering back to life “a year-end rally.” And how’s the year going to end?
If the December numbers will come in as projected, full-year 2009 U.S. sales would total 10.4 million vehicles. That would be the lowest tally since 1982. Other analysts expect the full-year total closer to 10.3 million vehicles, which would be the lowest sales total since 1970. Take your pick: “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” or “Don’t You Want me?”
J.D. Power’s crystal ball says that 2010 U.S. sales will be around 11.5 million vehicles, a gradual improvement in demand that can collapse any minute if unemployment worsens, or if there is an uptick at the pump due to a minor Mid-East imbroglio.
Hard numbers will be released by automakers on January 3.
I’d like to stuff their stockings. ;) Thanks Mr. Schmitt for finding something barely related to post with your article. LOL
I think automakers should start behaving as if 10 million units a year is the new 12 million. That would likely help most of them tremendously. Sadly Ford is too deeply in debt to do that, GM is too beholden to the US Government, and Chrysler is part of Fiats master plan to rule the world. An then the rest of the world is largely clawing over China and India.
So JD Power is telling us that domestic car sales will be down after the most turbulent year in the industry?
Thanks for the video-this wasn’t the most startling news in car world 2009.
I mean that in the most sincere “not the same as the day JFK was shot” way, but with all due respect to the slow news Christmas week thing-thanks again for the video.
So, assuming a best case scenario for 2011; who can make money at 11.5 million units/year?
Earlier this year I remember Ford saying they would be profitable at 11 million units/year.
With all due respect, “Coward of the County” topped the charts in 1980, not 1982. Maybe “I Love Rock N’ Roll?”
Also, thank you for that news piece. Who says CNN isn’t doing in-depth investigative journalism anymore?
Bomberpete: You are right. This is what I get if I rely on my fading memory. I looked it up this time and changed it to a more appropriate hit.
I was hoping that Jeane Moos would join the party… damn! :-(
Remember the infamous Edmunds pseudo-analysis of the Cash-For-Clunkers program? Guess what, they got their projections for November and December sales numbers all wrong. But hey, at the time their “analysis” fit the story ….