January 2014 - Dashboard Report

Outside of spikes in gas prices, a 4x4 truck tend to hold its value. Hummers might of become a collectors car also. The first one always was being based on a military vehicle with most of capabilities. The others might be now collectable with the company gone.

 

Top 20 Best-Selling Cars In America - January 2014 - GOOD CAR BAD CAR
January 2014 U.S. Passenger Car Sales Rankings - Top 143 Best-Selling Cars In America - Every Car Ranked - GOOD CAR BAD CAR
January 2014 U.S. Vehicle Sales Rankings By Model - Top 248 Best-Selling Vehicles In America - Every Vehicle Ranked - GOOD CAR BAD CAR

 

boy, that's all over the place.

 

Increasing competition from conventionals ...

mid-cycle refreshed 2014 Civic sedan EX now has CVT standard, gets 33 mpg combined, Smart Entry, push button start, rearview camera, touchscreen interface, moonroof, 16" alloys, has 143 HP and weighs 200 lbs less than Prius liftback ...

and costs over $3k less than Prius Two. Takes 6 yrs to earn that back at $4 gas and 12k / yr.

Increasing competition.

 

Competition for 2014 Corolla Eco Premium with Valvematic, 30/42, 35mpg combined, but not Prius!

 

Why don't these cars compete with prius? civic, corola, focus, cruze, mazda 3 certaily take a bigger market share. Prius market share dropped last year, compact cars increased 5%.

Small Car Sales In America - December 2013 And 2013 Year End - GOOD CAR BAD CAR
Toyota Prius Family Sales Figures - GOOD CAR BAD CAR

 

Was pointing out that low 30's combined of Honda Civic and other compacts do not compete with 50 mpg combined, but much closer to the 2014 Corolla Eco with 30/42/35mpg equally equipped.

 

Sure it is, but to grow hybrids need to reach into segments of non-hybrids. I consider the aqua/prius c more of a hybrid yaris than a smaller prius, but that model was more competitive in the compact segment. As people started thinking gasoline would be in the $3-$4 range last year those that want a compact form factor, if they can get 33 mpg epa versus 50 mpg in the prius would spend an extra $6200 over 10 years/150,000 miles in gas, but are likely to have less depreciation. If they like a compact better, that costs less upfront that gas savings isn't likely to sway them.

The prius also competes in the midsize segment, and here the erosion is more to mid sized hybrids. Say the midsized hybrid doesn't get sticker, but around 40 mpg versus 50 mpg, at $4 gas over 150,000 miles/10 years only about $3000 more. If you like the better acceleration and comfort of the camry hybrid, fusion hybrid, accord hybrid these have now gotten much closer in gas mileage than before.

Now with the prius gen IV redesign, they can probably get closer in terms of performance to the midsized hybrids which would create a reason to step up from a compact. If they further moved manufacturing to the US costs would get reduced allowing them more profits or a lower price and more sales. But more competition from higher mileage cars really is eating into prius liftback market.

 

Short term, that's a reasonable assessment.

Long term, more competition is a win for Prius. Counterintuitively, waiting for the next generation is too.

Other automakers pushing the shift away from traditional vehicles is how penetration deeper into the market will happen. It's necessary for expansion. This opportunity for catching up helps all involved.

We obviously find the slow pace annoying. That's how the mainstream market works though. The high-end niche can move rapidly. But with the majority in the middle, speed of change is glacial. Paradigm shifts means someone will lose. That means fighting for survival, even though the inevitable cannot be avoided... only delayed.

That's why Toyota's effort to offer an affordable plug-in option is so important. They are well aware of how long it takes to refine a design and not incur increase cost as a consequence. Being able to share improvements with the regular model makes competing with the wide variety of competitors, including their own traditional vehicles, is a major benefit.

Notice how much of a non-issue the switch to lithium has been so far. Both the 7-seat Prius wagon and the PHV work well with it. Although still expensive compared to NiHM, the new battery type has proven resilient in addition to being more efficient. Increased competition will help drive down the battery cost. Toyota is positioning to take advantage of that.

 

Agree with most of these.
3. That's how I use my Sonic's remote start on cold mornings. Most use it to turn on the car and idle it for a warm cabin though. Likely real world use will drop overall fuel economy.
9. This requires a change in federal and/or state regulations.
10. Improves aero, but decreases styling for most of the public. Could drive away sales with 'funny' looks.
7. There isn't a transmission filter. I understand it doesn't have all the wear components of an automatic, but I believe most manual transmissions have a more aggressive change schedule than the Prius.

 

+1

Yes I was only talking short term, until the next generation prius comes out. I hope toyota knocks it out of the park, but know it will only look like small changes on paper.

+1

These more efficient compacts also are helping push new rubber compounds for a better combination of low rolling resistance and handling. They also have electronic power steering, which may push those costs lower than older less reliable power steering systems. This should help reduce the hybrid premium.

 

Gasoline and diesel prices are on the rise again. Let's see how February does.

 

The predictions for automarket recovery really are march or april. We still have the cold weather this month that may keep people away. Every year gas prices rise in feb-april because of changes from winter to summer blends. THis is especially true in california where carb requires large numbers of different blends, and oil companies rebel by doing maintenance slowly to cause a bigger spike.

Historical Gas Price Charts - GasBuddy.com


This year with the weather febuary looks behind on gas prices rising. They will rise, but eia projects gas prices on average will be lower this year than last and lower in 2015 than this year. Predictions are that hybrid market will still grow this year more than a growing automarket, but lower gas prices likely mean less growth and a likely disapointing Febuary.

 

How odd are some collections...

25 Strangest Collections on the Web - Neatorama

 

Fuel prices were dropping around here fairly steadily over the past few weeks, but jumped literally overnight from 5 to 15 cents a gallon. With diesel fuel running $4+ now, I am not missing the TDIs.

 

Got it now, it was the first car to beat the Prius as a green car.
Grin.

"From dust to dust" LOL

 

For those interested, February numbers are out:
February 2014 Plug-In Electric Vehicle Sales Report Card

 

Or Russia invades the Ukraine and provokes a new Cold War!