Jonathan Banks, executive automotive analyst for NADA Used Car Guide, took a cautious approach not only looking at where new-vehicle sales could head in 2011 but also as to how high fuel prices could climb this year. At the outset of his first industry update for the year, Banks reiterated 2010’s new-vehicle sales total, which […] [Read More]

Ford swept these honors last year, but Chevrolet muscled in and took one of the accolades Monday from the North American Car of the Year Organizing Committee. Continuing the positive momentum for these domestic automakers, the committee tapped the Chevrolet Volt as the 2011 North American Car of the Year and then went with the […] [Read More]

Seven models — three domestic and four foreign — were honored for visual appeal, features, technology and more late last week by Edmunds.com in connection with its sister website InsideLine.com. Among those picked as the 2011 Editors Most Wanted Awards were a trio of vehicles made by members of the Big 3: the Cadillac CTS-V Wagon, […] [Read More]

Opinions gathered through KPMG’s 12th annual global automotive survey should be welcome news for the Big 3. Following years of economic uncertainty and industry restructuring, the survey showed global auto executives expect domestic automakers to increase market share during the next five years. What prompted that sentiment? Survey participants said domestic OEM growth will be spurred […] [Read More]

On Wednesday, Cars.com revealed the list of six vehicle contenders that will vie for its “Best of 2011” honor next week at an awards gala held during the Detroit Auto Show. The nominated models include the 2011 BMW 5 Series, 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, 2011 Chevrolet Volt, 2011 Honda Odyssey, 2011 Kia Optima and 2011 Nissan […] [Read More]

In completing its 2011 Car Brand Perception Survey, Consumer Reports discovered that two automakers tied in a statistical dead heat for the top spot with consumers. The publication revealed that a domestic almost knocked Toyota off its pedestal from the top of the rankings. [Read More]

New-vehicle sales for import automakers showed double-digit gains in the final month of 2010, a year that turned out to be relatively healthier for the overall auto industry, according to American International Automobile Dealers Association AIADA said, citing AutoData Corp. data, that import brands moved about 6.36 million units in 2010, which marked a 9.3-percent rise […] [Read More]

A pair of domestic brands enjoyed their second straight year commanding the top two spots for consumer research traffic on NADAguides.com in 2010, and the overall top 10 list didn’t change too much from a year ago. However, it appears the gap between brands has tightened up, according to the site’s president and chief executive officer. [Read More]

With consumers paying more at the pump coupled with an uptick in incentive spending, there was an unusual — albeit slight — decline in transaction prices during December, according to TrueCar.com. Specifically, December’s average new-vehicle transaction price reached $29,358, according to the company’s estimate. This marks a 0.9-percent year-over-year decline and a 0.3-percent sequential drop. [Read More]

Edmunds.com offered a rundown Tuesday of not only how automakers handed out incentives for December, but also what the 2010 average was for the top six OEMs. Looking first just at December numbers, site analysts found manufacturers averaged $2,528 in incentives per vehicle sold. That amount was $64, or 2.6 percent higher, than the previous […] [Read More]