Small van sales down Sep-Nov 2016

[103west43rd]

AS PER AUTOLINE DAILY 12/6/16 SMALL VANS FALL FLAT
Sales of passenger cars aren’t the only ones that are falling. So are sales of small vans. Get this, sales of these small vans in the American market are down nearly 38% over the last three months. That’s a bloodbath! The Ford Transit Connect is down 45%, the Nissan NV 200 is off 3%, the Ram Pro Master City is off 20% and the Chevrolet City Express, which is a rebadged version of the NV 200, has all but evaporated, down 74%. Here’s the weird thing. Sales for those vans were running pretty good all year long, but three months ago it’s like someone threw a switch. Sales have been falling ever since.

U.S. Small Van Sales Sep-Nov, 2016
Ford Transit Connect	13,966	-44.9%
Nissan NV200	4,002	-2.8%
Ram ProMaster City	3,566	-20.6%
Chevrolet City Express	731	-74.0%
TOTAL	24,349	-37.7%

[Fifty150]

That makes it a buyer's market.  You are in a much better position of negotiation.  When I bought my F-150, the F-150 dropped from the #1 selling auto to selling almost nothing every month.  Of course, that was back when gas was almost $5 per gallon.  

 

Consumers typically opt for larger vehicles when fuel prices are low, and smaller vehicles when fuel prices are high.

 

[Kyle Kielinski]

Maybe buyers start thinking about inclement weather come September and realize there are exactly zero 4wd/AWD options in the small van market.

I'd trade my TC in for an AWD version in a hot second.

[mrtn]

Seen a few Mk1 TC RS AWD projects in the UK web.

[Fifty150]

4 hours ago, Kyle Kielinski said:

Maybe buyers start thinking about inclement weather come September and realize there are exactly zero 4wd/AWD options in the small van market.

I'd trade my TC in for an AWD version in a hot second.

I've always wondered why people who need four wheel drive, or all wheel drive, don't buy what they need.  When my lifestyle was such, that I needed four wheel drive to go through snow & navigate off road to get to hunting camps & fishing spots, I simply bought 4WD.   That didn't mean that I bought what I couldn't afford.  I never owned an expensive Lexus, Porsche, or Audi SUV.  I bought used Ford Rangers and Jeep Wranglers because that was what my budget allowed at the time.  If I lived in a snow zone, and I depended on only owning 1 car, that car would be something that I could drive in the snow.  But on that note, I always wondered why even the Econolines never came with a 4WD option.  It seems simple enough that since Ford could produce a four wheel drive F-150, then they could produce a four wheel drive E-150.  After all, there are companies that convert Vans in 4WD.  In the case of the Econolines, they simply add the 4 wheel drive parts from the F-series.