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Faced with the startling reality
that $4-per-gallon gasoline can no longer be considered
a distant threat, new car buyers might be expected
to turn to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.
Recent sales figures, however,
suggest the American love affair with sport utility
vehicles has not abated. What's more, sales of
highly efficient sedans -- such as the Toyota
Prius hybrid -- have slacked off to the point
that Toyota is offering incentives on the Prius.
Sales of large SUVs actually rose
nearly 6 percent in the first quarter of 2007,
and in April were up 25 percent from last year.
GMC's Yukon XL saw sales rise 72
percent in April compared with a year earlier
while its cousin, the Chevrolet Suburban, saw
sales rise 38 percent for the same period. Apparently,
having to spend more than $100 to fill the tanks
on these icons of SUV excess isn't that much of
a worry for many folks.
What's driving these sales? It's a multipart answer largely
rooted in consumers seeking value.
Many American buyers have lifestyles that, rightly or wrongly, often demand vehicles that can carry five or more people as well as their gear. A household accustomed to having an SUV that has downsized to a sedan will, at some point, be faced with how to get something large home from a shopping trip.
Also, the big SUVs of today are
more fuel-efficient than those of only a few years
ago, thanks to technological innovations such
as cylinder deactivation that can, at times, make
a V8 sip gas like a V6.
More importantly, dealerships that
sell Ford, GM and Dodge vehicles are hungry for
sales because they don't have as wide a selection
of sedans as their Japanese counterparts. As a
result, a combination of factory rebates, incentives
and dealer discounts can knock as much as $10,000
off the sticker of a $50,000 SUV.
That's prompted some buyers to reason
that even with gas at $4 per gallon, a $10,000
discount could go a long way toward easing the
fuel bill.
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