Americans Falling Out Of Love With Gas Guzzlers

Jun. 8--Last month, Jeff Livengood placed an ad in the newspaper in hopes of selling his sport utility vehicle, a 2003 Ford Expedition.

The response: He hasn't gotten one offer, and his hopes of selling the SUV are fading.

As many owners of large SUVs and trucks are finding, the demand for used vehicles that burn up gas is drying up -- fast.

"Nobody wants a gas guzzler," Livengood said.

Times have changed since the Brooksville resident sold an SUV about three years ago. Back then, when gasoline prices were close to $2 a gallon, he sold the vehicle in less than a week. "I got full price for it, $11,900," Livengood recalled. "People were lining up to buy it."

Today, no one's queuing up for a gas hog. America's love affair with big trucks and SUVs has been dulled by record gasoline prices. Last month, the national average for regular-grade gas reached a new high of $3.23 a gallon.

The same month, sales of new and used Ford Explorer SUVs fell 17.3 percent compared with the same month last year, according to the auto industry tracking firm Ward's AutoInfoBank.

Sales of Ford's F-Series pickups dropped 12 percent, the seventh consecutive monthly decline.

In fact, the two Ford models, which each get less than 17 miles per gallon, are among the toughest vehicles to sell. Auto industry analysts say declining interest in gas guzzlers is likely to continue.

Allie Powell is a saleswoman for South Florida Auto Auction in Fort Lauderdale, which auctions trade-ins from new car dealers each week to the public. She said big trucks and SUVs no longer generate strong buyer interest.

"We've been seeing a lot more of them here, and they've been bringing in a lot less money," Powell said.

The auction company is paying about $2,000 less than it normally would for big gas-guzzling SUVs such as Chevrolet's Tahoe or Suburban, Powell said.

SUV Prices 'Moderating'

Brett Shelley of Tampa has been trying to sell his 1998 Ford Explorer for about three weeks. He said he priced the vehicle, which gets 14.5 miles per gallon, at $1,000 below the Kelley Blue Book value but still hasn't received any offers.

"Everybody has asked what the gas mileage is," Shelley said. "I think that may have turned off some people. It seems to be a factor."

His misery isn't unique. So far this year, overall SUV sales are down 7.1 percent compared with the same five-month period in 2006.

"We've seen SUV prices moderate somewhat," said Paul Taylor, chief economist for the National Automobile Dealers Association.

In each of the past three years, U.S. gasoline prices have surged to new highs. The average price of a gallon of gas in the Tampa Bay area has soared 31 percent to $3.03 since the beginning of the year, according to AAA.

"When gas prices go up, prices go down precipitously for pickup trucks and truck-based SUVS," Taylor said. "That's been the cycle for two years."

Consumers 'Right-Sizing Purchases'

The latest surge in gas prices, consumers' growing preference for smaller vehicles and a greater selection of small SUVs is calling the future of big trucks and SUVs into question.

"I think people have been right-sizing their purchases for 10 years," Taylor said.

In 2005 and 2006, small crossover SUVs and small cars increased in value, even during times when gas prices were relatively low, Taylor said.

"When gas prices came back down, the market's desire for more fuel-efficient vehicles did not abate," he said. "The crossover SUVs have been growing at double-digit rates since they started offering these vehicles in 1997."

In April, before gasoline prices spiked to record highs, Consumer Reports magazine conducted a survey that showed that 7 in 10 people would prefer a vehicle with better fuel efficiency than the model they own.

"People are inquiring about better gas mileage vehicles across the board," said Tom Alexander, a new car sales manager for Toyota of Tampa Bay.

Hybrid Sales On A Roll

While the owners of used trucks and cars that get poor gas mileage struggle to find buyers, hybrid car sales continue to soar.

Last month, the industry sold 47,096 hybrids, doubling the number of units sold in the same month last year. And sales of Toyota's Prius, America's best-selling hybrid, topped 24,000, a record high for a single month, making it the ninth-best selling vehicle in the United States.

Alexander, the sales manager for Toyota of Tampa Bay, said demand for the 60-mpg Prius has been extraordinary.

"I don't have any more Priuses in stock," he said. "Two months ago, I had 20 or so available, and now I don't have any. Everything that's coming in is spoken for."

Overall, hybrids account for a little more than 2 percent of the U.S. automobile market, Taylor said.

Hybrids typically cost a few thousand dollars more than their traditional counterparts. Recovering the extra cost from the savings on gas could take years, depending on the price of gas and the distance you drive.

But the additional cost rarely is a factor for those who buy a hybrid. Many of today's buyers are motivated primarily by a vehicle's lower emissions and the resulting effect on the environment.

"They're being bought by people who want to be doing the right thing," Taylor said. "They're being bought by politicians in Washington and stars in Hollywood. They want to be seen driving the correct vehicle."

U.S. hybrid sales have risen almost threefold since 2004, climbing from 86,275 in 2004 to 255,821 last year. So far this year, the industry has sold 147,684 hybrids, a 57 percent increase compared with the same five-month period in 2006.

Toyota says it expects to sell 430,000 hybrid vehicles worldwide this year, a 37 percent increase over last year.

Livengood, the Hernando County resident who couldn't sell his Ford Expedition, also owns a Ford Explorer and a Chevy 2500 pickup. The monthly tab for gasoline has been tough on his family budget.

"It can be over $600 a month sometimes," Livengood said. The rising cost of gas is "taking away from the number of people that would want a vehicle like this."

Reporter Russell Ray can be reached at (813) 259-7870 or rray@tampatrib.com.

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