Trucks outsell cars by widest margin in 5 years

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

Trucks outsold cars by the highest margin in nearly five years in October, a small sign that the economy may be starting to improve.

These trucks aren't the tractor-trailers that haul freight. They were vehicles such as pickups, SUVs, minivans and smaller SUVs, which made up 54 percent of all U.S. vehicle sales according to industry tracker J.D. Power and Associates, while cars made up 46 percent of the market. That's the biggest margin of difference between the two categories since December 2005, when trucks accounted for 56 percent of sales.

... Here are the trends behind the stronger truck sales:

-- People are spending more. Personal savings rates are coming down. The most recent figures show the rate has decreased from a yearly high of 6.4 percent in June to 5.3 percent in September - meaning people don't feel the need to hoard cash at the bank.

-- Gasoline is still affordable.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/11/04/state/n144700D97.DTL&tsp=1

[Zoeisright]

1. And they'll be the first ones dumped when the next oil crisis happens.

God, Americans are stupid.

[Monique1]

2. Can I tell you how much I hate these big trucks?

I can't see past them, I can't safely move out of my apt parking space because I cannot see past them. These trucks are a safety hazard.

[glinda]

3. Well we know who bought most of them. Stupid.

[Dawson Leery]

4. How many of these trucks will actually be used for work?

[madrchsod]

7. out here in the country around 60-70%

[provis99]

5. a minivan I can understand, but

why on earth does someone living in a city need a truck? And I just don't "get" SUVs; never have and never will. My brother-in-law bought a big ass black Nissan Titan (mid-life crisis, you can bet) and he's never, ever used the truck compartment. Pickups are useless vehicles if you don't haul stuff in them.

And why the heck do rich frat boys buy huge pickup trucks? I don't think that impresses sorority girls.

[madrchsod]

6. the new gen of suv`s are very nice and...

are selling like hot cakes around here. pick up trucks have always sold well out here in the country.
this makes the dealers happy because there`s a big profit margin in trucks.

[Independem]

8. Why they wanted GM closed Truck Car Sales in the South

Gulf States Toyota Distributors (GST) is the world’s second largest franchised distributor of Toyota vehicles. The 150 dealers in the five states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas account for 13% of Toyota sales in the United States. GST is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Friedkin Companies<1> and ranked 53rd on the Forbes 2008 list of America's Largest Private Companies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_States_Toyota_Distributors

Toyota has a plant in Texas, if GM would have closed it would have been a Giant Windfall for Southern Vehicle Manufactures!

[MrsBrady]

9. trucks in the rural areas make sense...

like my cousin that has 3 pickups...but he needs them for a working farm.

but then again, sometimes I wished I had one to drive around on the city roads here. I love my honda fit, i do. great gas mileage.
But damn the roads are so bad now, sometimes I wish I had a truck.

[truthisfreedom]

10. It's very difficult to get around here in Minnesota's snow if you don't have a 4-wheel drive vehicle

and a lot of ground clearance. SUVs are justified here in the winter, just for safety's sake.

[Zoeisright]

13. Baloney. I've lived in MN all my life and never had an SUV.

And most of the vehicles in a ditch after a big storm ARE SUVs. Because the people driving them don't understand that four wheel drive doesn't make your vehicle stop faster when it's slippery.

[truthisfreedom]

11. It's very difficult to get around here in Minnesota's snow if you don't have a 4-wheel drive vehicle

and a lot of ground clearance. SUVs are justified here in the winter, just for safety's sake.

[PSPS]

12. Do you still get the tax break for buying a car over a certain weight?