SUVs: Still Going Strong

Despite soaring gas prices, sales are rising here and across the nation. How do they survive?

CHAD UMBLE

Even as gas prices continue to rise - now passing the $3 mark - sport-utility vehicles remain popular.

Customers, both here and across the country, seem to be shrugging off the high petrol costs as they decide what to buy.

"If somebody wants an SUV, they're still going to get an SUV," said Mike Groff, sales manager at Keller Bros. Ford in Lititz, reporting that his sales of SUVs have increased recently.

"I don't think (gas mileage) is the ultimate deciding factor," he said.

National sales figures for sport-utility vehicles show that after a two-year slump, sales are up over 2006 totals - in some cases, way up.

The numbers for SUVs rose nearly 6 percent in the first quarter of 2007 compared to the same period in 2006, and April's figures were up 25 percent over April of a year ago, according to a San Francisco Chronicle report this week. The figures were based on automakers' statistics provided by Edmunds.com, an automotive research Web site.

Some of the biggest vehicles delivered the largest jumps.

Sales of GMC's Yukon XL were up 72 percent last month compared to April of 06, and the totals for its Chevrolet sister, the Suburban, rose 38 percent, the Chronicle reported.

Based on today's average gas prices in the Lancaster area, filling up the Yukon's 31-gallon tank would cost just under $100. In city driving, the vehicle gets 13 miles per gallon.

Tim McCord, general manager at Elizabethtown Chevrolet, explained customer behavior this way: Since gas prices have crossed the $3 barrier before, customers are less disturbed by the rise this time around.

"I think before, (with) the shock of going over $3, people did a knee-jerk reaction. Now that it is back at $3..., it doesn't seem as shocking," he said.

Average prices for a gallon of regular unleaded gas in Lancaster were in the $3 range last summer, while today the average is $3.03, according to data from the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

Plus, McCord said, customers still want the extra towing and hauling capacity of a sport-utility vehicle, despite higher fuel costs.

"They still have trailers to pull and they still have boats to pull and people to haul," he said.

Helping the sales numbers are new lines of "crossover" SUVs, which are included in the most recent sales figures. These vehicles are similar to SUVs but are smaller and generally get better gas mileage. For example, the new 2007 Ford Edge gets up to 25 miles per gallon, utilizing a technology that saves fuel at cruising speeds.

Bruce Kronman, general sales manager for Lancaster County Motors, of East Petersburg, said sales of smaller SUVs are strong. He added that people who can afford SUVs are often willing and able to bankroll the extra fuel costs.

The SUV turnaround comes after a 24 percent drop in SUV sales from the first quarter of 2004 to the same period of 2006, the Chronicle reported.

"We've always said that large SUVs are never going the way of the dodo," Alex Rosten, an analyst at Edmunds.com, told the Chronicle. "There will always be a demand for them. No other vehicle provides such capabilities: the sheer cargo and passenger space and the towing capacity."

(c) 2007 Intelligencer Journal. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.