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To coincide with more 2012 models hitting dealer lots, AutoTrader.com examined its new-vehicle site activity and found the compact car segment has gained considerable increases in consumer interest.

At the other end of the price spectrum, the AutoTrader.com New Car Insights Report for September showed luxury vehicles are gaining ground with notable new-model rank improvements compared to the previous month. 

“With automakers producing exciting cars on both ends of the price spectrum, car shoppers have certainly begun to take notice,” site analysts insisted.

Though these models did not yet land among the top 20 most-viewed models in September, AutoTrader.com analysts added the significant increases in activity will certainly be a trend they plan to watch closely.

Compact and Luxury Cars Make Big Moves in September

This month, AutoTrader.com’s Trend Engine Report produced a closer look at the “Big Movers” on the site — vehicles that have gained significantly more consumer interest month-over-month. AutoTrader.com discovered interesting early trends in what vehicles consumers are considering.

The site said the predominant trend emergence was that of new-compact car entries that lead the list of new-vehicle rank gainers on the site.

“With economic factors and high gas prices weighing on consumers’ minds, small cars are creating some big buzz in the industry, and that buzz was certainly reflected in new car shoppers’ actions on AutoTrader.com,” analysts explained.

The site found new entries led the charge with large month-over-month rank improvements for the much-buzzed-about Hyundai Veloster (up 219 spots to No. 144), the much-anticipated Chevrolet Sonic (up 215 spots to No. 109), the redesigned Volkswagen Beetle (up 169 spots to No. 141) and the new-to-the U.S. and heavily supported Fiat 500 (up 30 spots to No. 66).

Analysts pointed out the redesigned Nissan Versa rounded out the top compact cars on the Big Movers list (up 72 spots to No. 50).

Barring any unforeseen issues, AutoTrader.com believes these small models should continue to rise up in the rankings as consumers seek more economical choices and get behind the wheels of these exciting models.

“In the past, small cars didn’t fare very well with American shoppers, as many of the available options were considered cheap and lacking in features,” stated Rick Wainschel, vice president of automotive insights at AutoTrader.com.

“However, the compacts being produced today like the Veloster and the Sonic are exciting, fun-to-drive and fuel-efficient,” Wainschel continued. “Add in some great technology features being offered on these models, and there’s a lot more to love about these small cars.”

Meanwhile, luxury models also made some big month-over-month moves on the site.

Leading the rank improvements was the Mercedes-Benz CL Class, which moved up 82 spots in its ranking from August to September, making the biggest leap of all of the new luxury vehicles on the site.

The site noticed the C Class, fueled by fresh new designs for the 2012 model year, made a 74-spot leap, the GL Class moved up 27 spots and the S Class experienced a 25-spot improvement.

Rounding out the list of luxury vehicles making big moves in AutoTrader.com’s September activity were the Audi TT models with a 55-spot jump, the Jaguar XF with a 39-spot leap and the Hyundai Equus with a 39-spot improvement.

“The movement of these luxury cars in September was quite revealing to us,” Wainschel acknowledged.

“What these numbers say to us is that there may be some pent up demand developing in the luxury car segment,” he went on to say. “Whether these vehicles continue to garner significant interest will likely be driven by consumer confidence and the economic climate over the next few months.”

Large Trucks and SUVs Capture Bigger Shares of Interest in September

After discussing cars, AutoTrader.com turned its attention to trucks.

“Americans have shown time and again that they love their large trucks and SUVs, and a deep dive into the share of views by segments on AutoTrader.com shows just how much that interest has grown over the last few years,” analysts admitted.

Out of the total views on AutoTrader.com in September, the site determined trucks experienced a 2.3 point change compared to the prior month. In looking year-over-year, views for full-size trucks were up 3.4 points from September of 2010 and up a full 6.3 points from September 2009.

AutoTrader.com said midsize SUVs are currently the second most-viewed segment on its site, though the overall share of views declined from August to September by 0.9 points. Nevertheless, the share for this segment is still up 1.0 point from September 2010 and 1.7 points from September 2009.

The site mentioned full-size SUVs have also shown similar increases in consumer interest with the segment being up 0.2 points in share of views month-over-month and 0.9 points higher since 2010 and 0.3 points more since 2009.

“We definitely saw a dip in interest for large trucks and SUVs during the April-May timeframe as gas prices were near record highs, but the segments have experienced a healthy rebound since then,” Wainschel surmised.

“With compact car and luxury car interest also seeing recent gains, automakers will have to carefully monitor the trends in shopper behavior to chart their course and adjust their sails,” he cautioned.

Most-Viewed New Vehicles in September

Compact and luxury cars were certainly making some big moves in September, but full-size trucks remained among the most-viewed cars overall on AutoTrader.com.

The Ford F-150 again claimed the top spot, and a number of others secured their places in the top 10. The models included:

—The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 at No. 5.
—The Dodge Ram 1500 at No. 6.
—The Ford F-250 at No. 7.
—The Chevrolet Silverado 2500 at No. 10.

AutoTrader.com thinks the significant drop in gas prices over the summer, which continued in September, contributed to the sustained popularity of these vehicles.

“What this year’s precipitous rise and then subsequent fall in gas prices showed us this year is that car shoppers are getting accustomed to higher gas prices,” Wainschel noted.

“Consumers were slower to shift their shopping focus toward more fuel-efficient cars when prices were on the rise, and they were also much quicker to return to their traditionally favorite large vehicles as prices started falling,” he added.

Price Tracker: Trucks and Korean Vehicles Show Big Price Increases

After sharing trends with regard to shopper activity, AutoTrader.com put its focus on price movements.

The site determined three of the trucks in the list  of most-viewed vehicles commanded significant price premiums over the same time last year. AutoTrader.com found the asking price for the F-150 increased 2.9 percent or $1,065 while the price for the Silverado 2500 jumped 3.1 percent or $1,295.

The price for the Ford F-250 increased the most of all the full-size trucks at 5.1 percent or $2,353.

“These trucks have been in high demand for quite some time, likely contributing to the higher prices,” analysts explained.

Outside of the most-viewed cars, AutoTrader.com noted a number of Korean models showed significant year-over-year price increases.

Catching the attention of AutoTrader.com analysts was the redesigned Kia Optima’s price, increasing 23.5 percent or $4,780. Also noteworthy was the Hyundai Elantra’s price rising 19.7 percent or $3,495 and the Hyundai Accent’s price climbing 16.2 percent or $2,345.

“These automakers have been making significant headway in the new-car arena over the last year, increasing demand for many models,” AutoTrader.com concluded.