ATWMotorFreight.com – Car Care and News in the Auto Industry

Recently, two automakers announced safety recalls for diverse problems on various models that are popular fleet vehicles.

Ford Motor Company is recalling an estimated 453,650 2021-2022 F-150 vehicles for a visibility issue. Specially, the front windshield wiper motor may become inoperative, causing the wipers to fail.

Inoperative windshield wipers can reduce the driver’s visibility in certain conditions, increasing the likelihood for a collision.

To fix the problem, dealers will replace the front windshield wiper motor, at no cost to owners. Owner notification letters will be mailed Jan. 3, 2023. Owners can reach Ford customer service at (866) 436-7332. Ford’s reference number for this recall is 22S71. Ford also notes that this recall expands previous recall number 22V-142.

Separately, Stellantis is recalling approximately 248,342 2020-2023 Ram 2500 and 2020-2022 Ram 3500 vehicles for a fire risk. Specifically, a build-up of pressure and heat inside the transmission may result in a transmission fluid leak from the dipstick tube.

This is a hazardous situation, as a leaking transmission fluid may contact an ignition source within the engine compartment, increasing the chances for a fire.

The remedy for the problem is currently under development, according to the manufacturer. Owner notification letters will be mailed Dec. 30, 2022. Owners may contact Stellantis customer service at (800) 853-1403. Stellantis’ number for this recall is ZA3.

For GREAT deals on a new or used Jaguar check out Cole Jaguar TODAY!

Wholesale used-vehicle prices (on a mix-, mileage-, and seasonally adjusted basis) increased 0.4% from October in the first 15 days of November, according to the mid-month Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index released Nov. 17, which rose to 200.7.

That was down 13.7% from November 2021. The non-adjusted price change in the first half of November declined 0.8% compared to October, moving the unadjusted average price down 11.7% year over year. 

Over the last two weeks, Manheim Market Report (MMR) prices saw fairly normal declines for the time of year, resulting in a 1.1% cumulative decline in the Three-Year-Old MMR Index, which represents the largest model-year cohort at auction. During the first 15 days of November, MMR Retention, which is the average difference in price relative to current MMR, averaged 98.4%, which indicates that valuation models are ahead of market prices.

The average daily sales conversion rate of 50.7% in the first half of November declined relative to October’s daily average of 51.3%. Still, conversion rates typically decline in November, and the conversion rate was similar to the daily average in November 2019. The latest trends in key indicators suggest wholesale used-vehicle values should decline in line with normal trends in the second half of November.

Maintaining the trend from October, all eight major market segments saw seasonally adjusted prices that were lower year over year in the first half of November. Compact cars had the lowest decline at -9.5%, while sports cars, vans, pickups and midsize cars lost less compared to the overall industry in seasonally adjusted year-over-year changes. Compared to October, five major segments saw price increases, with full-size, luxury and midsize cars lower than the industry. Only sports cars and vans showed unadjusted price increases versus October.

Retail and Wholesale Days’ Supply Normal in Mid-November

Using estimates based on vAuto data as of Nov. 14, used retail days’ supply was 49 days, which was down two days from the end of October. Days’ supply was up seven days year over year but even with the same week in 2019. Leveraging Manheim sales and inventory data, Cox estimates that wholesale supply will end November at 28 days, unchanged from the end of October but up eight days year over year. As of Nov. 15, wholesale supply was at 28 days, unchanged from the end of October but up seven days yersus year over year and one day lower than at the same time in 2019. Used supply measured in days’ supply and compared to 2019 suggests supply is normal for this time of year, which indicates that depreciation should be normal for the time of year as well.

Rental Risk Prices Mixed, Mileage Down in First Two Weeks of November

The average price for rental risk units sold at auction in the first 15 days of November was up 1.5% year over year. Rental risk prices were down 0.3% compared to the full month of October. Average mileage for rental risk units in the first half of October (at 55,400 miles) was down 26.8% compared to a year ago and down 2.9% month over month.

Consumer Sentiment Measures Mixed to Start November

The initial October reading on Consumer Sentiment from the University of Michigan declined 8.7% to 54.7 as views of current conditions fell even more, and future expectations also declined. Expected inflation rates increased slightly. Consumers’ views of buying conditions for vehicles declined but was still the second-best reading since March. June was the all-time low in the reading. The daily index of consumer sentiment from Morning Consult reflects that sentiment is trending higher to start the month. The timelier measure indicated consumer sentiment was up 2.3% in the first 15 days of November. This lower measure coincided with declining gas prices in early November, an improving stock market and a relatively calm mid-term election.

Originally posted on Vehicle Remarketing

For GREAT deals on a new or used Nissan check out Antelope Valley Nissan TODAY!

Monthly payments on new car finance contracts have risen by more than 40% on some models since 2019, according to research by What Car?.

Research by What Car?’s team of Target Price mystery shoppers compared typical finance deals between five models currently on sale and in 2019.

It found average monthly personal contract purchase (PCP) payments had risen by at least 22.4% across the sample models, with petrol and hybrid variants of the Volvo XC40 recording a 42.5% rise in average monthly payments.

The five models compared were the Ford Puma, Mini Hatchback, Seat Ateca, Volkswagen Golf and Volvo XC40, all which have been on sale in their current guises since 2019.

All models had also recorded at least an 11.0% rise in list prices, plus interest rates had risen in all examples – and even tripled for one.

Steve Huntingford, What Car? editor, said: “PCP finance is the most popular choice for new car buyers, but the differences between the offers available today show the importance in doing your research to compare deals and consider other options such as bank loans when financing a vehicle.

“The car industry is not immune to the challenges of Covid, semiconductor shortages and now energy price increases, and they have combined to cause a significant amount of turmoil in the new car market.

“However, the price rises are not universal, nor always applicable to finance and cash purchases, so it’s still possible to get a tempting deal if you shop around or use our free new car buying service.”

While three of the five models compared were cheaper to buy via finance than cash in 2019, all five models cost more to buy via finance to-date.

However, despite rising interest rates and costs, What Car?’s team of mystery shoppers found some new cars remain cheaper to buy on finance.

For instance, buyers opting for a 42-month PCP deal on a Toyota C-HR 1.8 Hybrid Icon CVT stand to save 4.6% over the list price when financing the vehicle, due to a finance deposit contribution of up to £1250 and low interest rate of 1.9%. The cash saving equates to £1362 over the 42-month ownership cycle.

Similarly, the Ford Ecosport 1.0 Ecoboost 125 Titanium and the BMW 5 Series 530d xDrive M Sport work out cheaper than their original list price when purchased using PCP finance, with 3.8% and 2.1% savings, equating to £887 and £1202 over the list price, respectively.

Ford, the UK new car market leader by volume year-to-date (YTD), is back with a range of 0% retail offers to tempt customers to close out 2022.

For GREAT deals on a new or used Harley check out Death Valley Harley TODAY!

In 1975, Toyota, Mazda and Datsun each offered Americans four different car models. Even Fiat had three different models to sell here that year, but the only car American Honda dealers carried at that time was the Civic. The following model year, Honda introduced a brand-new car that was bigger, better-equipped, and more powerful than the tiny Civic: the Accord. Those first-generation 1976-1980 Accords sold like mad, turning the America Honda Motor Company into a major automotive player on our shores. Here’s one of those history-laden Accords, finally retired at age 42 in a Denver self-service car graveyard.

Related: 2023 Honda Accord first look

For the first couple of years, the Accord was available here just as a three-door hatchback. For 1978, the Accord four-door sedan appeared, ready to do battle with cramped rear-wheel-drive four-doors.

The first-generation Accords were powered by Honda’s CVCC-equipped E-series four-cylinder engines. This one has a 1.75-liter version, sending 72 horsepower to the front wheels. That doesn’t sound like much, but this car’s curb weight was a mere 2,130 pounds (about the same as a new 78-horse Mitsubishi Mirage and about 1,000 pounds lighter than the 2022 Accord). By 1980 standards, the Accord was reasonably quick.

The CVCC system ran so clean that Honda didn’t need to put a catalytic converter on this car. That meant that 1980 Accord owners could run cheap leaded gas (which remained available for on-highway use here through 1995). This is a 49-state car, not legal for sale new in California or at elevations above 4,000 feet (1,280 feet lower than the car’s current parking spot).

The CVCC system, which involved separate rich/lean combustion chambers and a puzzling two-in-one carburetor, became unworkably complex by the middle 1980s. In 1980, the vacuum-hose tangle hadn’t become too intimidating (compared to the “Map of the Universe” rigs of 1985). CVCC was still the envy of the automotive world, though electronic fuel injection would soon shove it aside.

You wouldn’t know it from this car, which baked in the sun for decades before coming here, but the first-generation Accord’s interior was very nice for one found in such an affordable car.

The 1980 Accord sedan’s list of standard features was impressive for the time. Power steering, tachometer, clock, trip odometer, intermittent wipers, tinted glass, remote side mirror, and tinted glass were all included at no extra cost. Those orange rectangles below the odometer are the maintenance-reminder indicators, which the shop was supposed to reset after servicing (few did).

This one even has air conditioning and what may be the original AM/FM/cassette radio.

A five-speed manual transmission — reasonably sporty hardware for 1980 — was standard equipment, and that’s what’s in this car. The weird two-speed Hondamatic transmission was still offered, though Honda introduced a true three-speed automatic in the Accord that year (new Civics with Hondamatics were available here all the way through 1983).

This pinstriping appears to have been applied early in the car’s life. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a factory option.

These cars were extremely rust-prone, though this once doesn’t have horrible rot in the usual places. The sun burned the paint off in spots and rain and snow did their work while this car sat in a field or driveway for at least 20 years.

The MSRP on this car was $6,515, or about $24,810 in 2022 dollars. The Volkswagen Dasher (known as the Passat elsewhere at the time) was the 1980 competitor most mechanically similar to the Accord, and it cost $7,790 for a five-door hatchback. Toyota’s Corolla sedan was a bit smaller and its rear-wheel-drive layout gave it a claustrophobia-inducing interior, but you could buy it for just $4,298. Meanwhile, the roomier Chevy Citation compact sedan could be purchased for just $5,378 with a V6 engine.

I think the 51,772 miles showing on this car’s odometer might be the true final mileage reading, because it takes many years for an interior to get this nuked.

As the world is getting bigger, so must Honda.

In its homeland, the Accord was considered a substantial luxury car. Starting with the 1982 model year, many US-market Accords would be built in Ohio.

For GREAT deals on a new or used Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep or RAM check out Bravo CDJR TODAY!

November 7, 2022

Sales into large fleets, not including sales into dealer and manufacturer fleets, increased 21% month over month in October to 148,721 units, according to an early estimate from Cox Automotive released Nov. 4.

Combined sales into large rental, commercial, and government fleets were up nearly 49% year over year in October. Sales into rental and commercial were both up 58% year over year, while sales into government fleets were down just slightly at 0.3%. 

Fleet Share of Retail Sales Increases

Including an estimate for fleet deliveries into dealer and manufacturer channels, the remaining retail new-vehicle sales were estimated to be up 5.9%, leading to an estimated retail sales pace, or seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), of 12.8 million, up 0.9 million from last month’s pace, or 7.4%, and up 1.2 million, or 10.3%, from last year’s pace. The total fleet market share was 14.1% in October, a 1.9% gain from last month and a 2.9% gain from last year. For context, total fleet sales volume was 227,602 units in October 2019, representing a 17.1% share of total retail sales.

“In October, we saw a slight uptick in fleet share month over month,” said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist of Cox Automotive, in a news release. “It’s too soon to tell, but this could be the beginning of some manufacturers leveraging the fleet ‘relief valve’ by shifting more of their sales to fleet as they see retail sales soften a bit due to consumers facing economic uncertainly and affordability concerns.”

Among manufacturers, GM had the largest fleet increase over last year, followed by Stellantis and Ford. Meanwhile, Kia and Hyundai had the largest fleet declines compared to a year ago.

Originally posted on Vehicle Remarketing

Isuzu UK has welcomed Monaghan Bros to its dealer network, expanding the brand’s footprint with a new showroom in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland.

The opening of the new dealership brings the total number of Isuzu dealers in the UK to 108, with six now located across Northern Ireland.

Greater Manchester-based Premier Automotive was the 107th dealership to join Isuzu UK’s franchised retail network, in October.

Monaghan Bros is a family-run business with more than 45 members of staff and some 50 years of experience within the automotive industry.

The dealership also holds Ford and Hyundai franchises.

John Armitage, Monaghan Bros sales director, said: “We are thrilled to be joining the Isuzu UK network, with our extensive background in all things automotive, we are confident that we can do the established brand justice. With a large part of our customer base being from trade, construction and farming backgrounds, the Isuzu D-Max is the perfect addition to our product range.”

The Isuzu D-Max range is available in single, extended or double cab body styles and offers a one-tonne payload and a 3.5-tonne towing capacity.

Alan Able, brand director at Isuzu UK, added: “We’re excited to be welcoming Monaghan Bros. to the dealer network, with their expertise and knowledge they are more than capable of expanding our coverage within Northern Ireland. Now the Award-Winning Isuzu D-Max pick-up range is much more accessible to Fermanagh and the local surrounding areas, with Monaghan Bros. Isuzu providing the closest hub for sales, aftersales and servicing for over 35 miles.”

Isuzu welcomed 16 new dealer partners in 2021, with a number coming from the defunct Mitsubishi brand.