The reason? Although there are plenty of customers who want to buy new vehicles at hefty prices, there still aren't enough computer chips for the industry to fully crank up its factories. So supplies are short, prices are high, and many customers can't get what they want.
Sales hit just over 15 million vehicles in 2021, up 3.4% from 2020, the year the pandemic took hold in the
“Demand is not off at all,” said
Cox expects 2021 sales to be 14.9 million vehicles, up 2.5% from 2020, the year the pandemic hit the
Among the hardest hit by the chip shortage was
Like other automakers,
The company, Cain said, expects the chip shortage to ease this year, with more available in the second half.
Among other automakers reporting full-year sales numbers were
Analysts and industry executives say although chip supplies are improving, its not certain when they'll get back to pre-pandemic levels. The average gas-powered vehicle has about 1,000 chips, and electric vehicles can have more than double that number.
IHS Markit analyst
“We're seeing 2022 as being an improvement over 2021, but it's not going to start January third or fourth,” he said, adding that the second half should be better than the first.
There are signs that the number of vehicles on dealer lots is growing, though. It rose to more than 1 million last month for the first time since August, Krebs said. But that's still 1.5 million below 2020 and 2.5 million fewer than in 2019.
Cox is predicting that
Amsrud attributed the vehicle inventory growth more to automakers managing the chip shortage better, rather than any dramatic growth in chip supplies. Like
He's making record profits, selling just about every vehicle he gets at sticker price, while customers are happy to find vehicles. They're also getting high prices for trade-ins because used car prices have skyrocketed.
Owners have an average of
"The customer right now just wants the (good) experience and the car,” Kelleher said. “If you have the car and you get them the car, they're going to be happy with you.”
In normal times, Kelleher would have 750 vehicles for sale on his lot. Now he's got 12. But he isn't paying interest on the inventory and has been able to cut advertising 30%.
Because of strong demand and low supplies,
Sales of fully electric vehicles rose 87.9% for the year to nearly 489,000, but they still accounted for only 3.2% of the market.
Sedans definitely aren't driving new vehicle demand.
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