Lower Gas Prices Leads To Excess Of Smaller Cars & Great Deals
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- With gasoline prices still low, auto manufacturers report a real run this spring on less fuel efficient vehicles -- like trucks and SUVs.
"We sell a good share of trucks and SUVs right now because of the lower price of gas," said Dave Ross of Bowser Automotive.
Ross heads up sales for Bowser that sells Hyundai, Subaru, Nissan, Buick and GMC vehicles, and the sale of bigger more expensive vehicles correlates with lower gas prices.
"I'm sure it will go up at some point," Ross told KDKA money editor Jon Delano. "Right now, we're experiencing the lows, and we're happy for that because it's helping to sell more vehicles here."
But it also means a glut of smaller, less expensive cars -- and that's good news for some consumers.
In April supply of small cars on dealer lots grew to the highest level in seven years.
That's why dealers are offering discounts to unload the small cars, and one manufacturer even has its own website to promote the sales of small cars.
Richard Bazzy, owner of Shults Ford, says it's a great time to buy a smaller car.
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Bazzy: "A brand new Fiesta, for example, is $14,900."
Delano: "That's a pretty good deal."
Bazzy: "It's really -- of course, after all incentives -- it's an excellent deal."
And the incentives, says Bazzy, are incredible.
"Wonderful incentives. On a Focus right now, zero percent financing for 60 months plus a $2,000 rebate, or you can lease that car for just $159 a month," says Bazzy.
Other dealers are pushing small cars, too.
""Right now we're offering '16 Elantras, a small entry level car for Hyundai in the mid to low-mid $16,000 range," says Ross.
"I have new Nissans as low as $13,900 right now, and they're brand new."
Chevrolet has even designed a website to attract younger buyers to smaller cars.
No surprise, says Bazzy, smaller cars with better gas mileage and lower prices appeal to the young.
"Everybody targets the millennials. It's the largest demographic of any of us," notes Bazzy.