Not so long ago, in the pre-pandemic era, automakers were ready for the option that Americans would eventually avoid buying vehicles, choosing to rely on shared vehicles, especially once autonomous car generation is widely available.
But COVID-19 has disappointed one’s expectations, tipping the clock in the direction of owning a private car, as Americans say they will most likely drive themselves rather than take someone else’s car or take transportation. public.
Among Americans who have been buying vehicles lately, more than one in five, or 22%, they had no plans to buy one before the start of the pandemic, according to a recent survey through CarGurus for car purchases.
Times are tough for the industry. Car sales fell in 2020 due to economic recession and record unemployment.The Automotive Research Center, a non-profit organization that tracks the industry, projected U.S. sales of about thirteen million cars by 2020, below previous forecasts of about 17 million.
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But long-term trends can be for automakers.
Car buyers who have used car-sharing service, about 2 out of 5, or 39%, say they plan to use those facilities less from now on, according to carGurus’ June survey.And among car buyers who used public transportation, more than 2 out of 5, or 44%, he says he plans to reduce public shipping
Overall, 1 in 3 people say they expect to use their vehicle more after the pandemic ends.
“The bottom line is that other people see cars from a new perspective, whether it’s an escape, a way to escape the quarantine and tension we’ve all experienced in recent months, but also as a certain way to get there.”Madison Gross, Director of Customer Data at CarGurus.
Simply put: while analysts say it’s hard to know precisely how it will replace transport after the coronavirus, the death from owning a private car has been greatly exaggerated.
Here are the trends that drive cars:
The Uber and Lyft cycling apps have taken steps to demand masks and implement disinfection processes.But their number of passengers has plummeted as Americans, who don’t want to travel so much right now, are increasingly afraid to travel in cars that foreigners use in the day.
Will these considerations persist beyond COVID-19? I mean.
But at least the pandemic has led some to distrust the surfaces of shared vehicles, which were already known to have bacteria.
“If other people feel safer in their cars than in car-sharing services, that deserves to bode well for us because we’re in the new car sales business,” Randy Parker, Hyundai’s sales manager, said in an interview.before this opportunity to allow those consumers to take a look at our product.”
Travelling on the subway or taking the bus has strayed from the road for many travelers, even those who still go to work.
Concerns about meeting other travelers face-to-face are potentially significant, especially as epidemiologists say COVID-19 spreads through close face-to-face contact.
In New York City, dealerships report an influx of former public transportation users to buy a car for the first time in some time, or even for the first time.
“We know anecdotally that in places like giant urban spaces – specific New York – other people who have never purchased a car before” are in the new vehicle market, said Michelle Krebs, an analyst at the site.Autotrader car acquisition.
With particularly small airArray, Americans travel to places where they can safely practice social distance or simply drive to avoid flying.
More than one in 10 Americans went camping for the first time in 2020, while one in five Americans visited a national park for the first time, according to a Chevrolet-funded Harris ballot released Thursday.
In addition, “people travel long distances to see the circle of familiar members who may have flown” to see in the past, Gross said.
About a portion of car buyers say their car is an escape right now, according to the CarGurus survey, and that affects what other people buy.
“You can buy a friendlier vehicle to travel.Three-row medium-sized SUVs are a very popular market right now,” Krebs said, pointing to cars such as Hyundai Palisade, Kia Telluride and Subaru Ascent.
Parker of Hyundai said the three-row palisade had been “a major bright spot” for the company in that period.Launched in 2019, it surpassed medium sedan Sonata as Hyundai’s fourth-highest sales success to date in 2020.
Another that benefits: pickup trucks, especially medium pickup trucks, such as the Toyota Tacoma and Chevrolet Colorado.
Analysts say vans continue to grow as Americans look to buy cars that can tow things smoothly.
As more and more Americans buy jet skis and recreational cars to get out and out of each other, the vans are benefiting.
Vehicles accounted for 18% of US sales in 2019, according to Cox Automotive, which owns Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book, making them 21% in 2020.
With many Americans who can’t eat in domestic restaurants because of regulation or no less than threatening it, some hotels at night in their vehicles.
Kim Sperling and her husband, Bruce, are among them.Every Sunday afternoon, they spend a romantic date at their 2018 Chevrolet Suburban while their parents take care of us with their 7-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter.
“We’re passing for a walk and it would be our date day,” Kim said.”We pass for a milkshake and we finish up taking a nap in our car.We communicate for a moment, turn on the air conditioning and fall asleep.”
The couple, who live in a Dallas suburb, started dating in April.”We learned that we would lose our minds if there wasn’t a way for my husband and I to connect,” Kim said.
On an April exam through Cars.com automotive studies, 53% of parents who responded to the survey said they used their car “to hide from their children.”
In a separate test conducted through TrueCar to save cars, 73% of respondents said they used their car as a personal area to get away from the other people they live with.
The trend of running anywhere in 2020 can happen either way, analysts say.
For one thing, you can lessen the need for a non-public vehicle if you paint from home all day and don’t want it to move.
But analysts say that other people who have worked in cities with access to public transportation and car sharing are more likely to want a car for non-public use if they have temporarily or permanently moved to the suburbs or even further afield.
CarGurus’ survey asked buyers if they planned to use their more or less for displacement or paint trips: 17% said more, 9% less.
Contribution: Jamie LaReau, Detroit Free Press reporter
Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.