In response to continued industry demand for used vehicles, Penske said Friday that it increased the footprint of its network of used truck centers.

And perhaps the third quarter ComTrend analysis from Work Truck Solutions of new and used commercial vehicles reinforced why the publicly traded company made this decision.

Work Truck Solutions indicated that continuing supply chain issues with new commercial vehicles induced predictable trends associated with used work trucks and vans. But analysts said there was also a bit of good news for dealers and buyers alike.

Although persistent manufacturing obstacles have kept new inventory per dealer drastically lower than last year, Work Truck Solutions reported there was an uptick in inventory of almost four more vehicles per dealer compared to last quarter.

“The good news here is that this builds on the increase of two vehicles per dealer in Q2, which indicates inventory levels are improving, even if slowly,” analysts said in a news release.

Work Truck Solutions determined average prices across new commercial vehicles have remained relatively steady and still significantly higher than pre-pandemic, showing only a 0.2% increase Q3 over Q2, reflecting a three-quarter trend in 2022, and a 1.5% average increase year-over-year.

Analysts pointed out that the proliferation of last-mile delivery service businesses is evident as new vans have continued to increase in price across class and body types. For example, although light duty upfitted cargo van average prices remained almost constant quarter-over-year. But year-over-year, there was a 5.6% increase from $39,789 in Q3 2021.

In terms of web searches, Work Truck Solutions indicated empty cargo vans led the charge in percentage point increase from Q3 2021 to Q3 2022.

Meanwhile, Work Truck Solutions reported used work trucks sustained an average price drop of 6.4% quarter-over-year.

Analysts also noted the median mileage of used work trucks rose 8.2% quarter-over-quarter, up to 58,301 from 53,865. This rise marks a 23.7% year-over-year mileage increase from Q3 2021.

Work van prices, however, did not follow suit with trucks, according to Work Truck Solutions.

Its report found that overall used van prices continued to climb, especially compared to this time last year. Averaged across all categories, prices jumped more than 4.5% quarter-over-quarter and soared 32.05% year-over-year.

“The data from the first three quarters of this year tell the story of how the market is reacting to a prolonged manufacturing crisis,” Work Truck Solutions CEO Aaron Johnson said in the news release. “Used inventory per dealer has been increasing the past few quarters, while new inventory remains at historic lows, even though we’re encouraged with this year’s marginal increases.

“The fact that used van pricing remains aggressive is a testament to the evolving landscape of modern businesses. If dealers want to succeed in such uncertain times, they must stay informed and armed with tools that help them thrive, rather than just survive,” Johnson continued.

And evidently, Penske is thriving in the used commercial truck space since the company recently opened four retail locations in Kansas City, Mo., Chicago, Miami, and Tampa.

“While the majority of our used-vehicle sales continue to take place online, our physical used truck centers also remain an effective channel and touchpoint with business customers,” said Jack Mitchell, senior vice president of vehicle remarketing at Penske.

“We currently have 16 used truck centers open and we plan to open one more by year’s end to better serve customers and demand for used vehicles in Texas,” Mitchell added in another news release.

Penske Used Trucks, a business unit of Penske Truck Leasing, is a seller of high-quality late-model used commercial trucks to retail, wholesale, used truck dealers, and corporate truck fleet buyers. Penske sells used sleeper and day cab semi-tractors, straight trucks, flatbeds, refrigerated vans, semi-trailers, box trucks, cargo vans and more.

Penske sells numerous brands of light-duty, medium-duty and heavy-duty commercial vehicles including Ford, GMC, Hino, Isuzu, Freightliner, International, Volvo and others.

Visit penskeusedtrucks.com to learn more or call (866) 309-1692 for sales inquiries.