Wholesale auction prices rose slightly in the first two weeks of January, but values decreased on an average of $99 overall. Vans and pickup trucks saw the largest price increase, according to NADA Used Car Guide.
Analysts are mixed about Chrysler's recovery plan. Dodge CEO Ralph Gilles expects Chrysler will turn around under the Fiat leadership team and offer quality products needed to regain market share.
The volatile new and used vehicle market for 2008 and 2009 has calmed such that stability should return in 2010. Improved new and used vehicle sales should create supply, churn and demand in the wholesale market keeping residual values up.
FocusDriven has been created as a result of US DOT's 2009 meeting on distracted driving. A National Safety Council study revealed 26% of crashes occur during cellphone use with 1.4M of those being talking and 200K being texting. Over 120 studies suggest hands-free talking doesn't eliminate the distraction.
With the economy sputtering back to life, General Motors is betting that truck buyers will return to the market. As the country slid into recession, truck buyers, many in the construction and building industries, left the market. Spikes in gasoline prices drove recreational truck buyers to small cars and crossovers. To meet the predicted re-emergence of truck demand, GM has decided to proceed with its delayed full size pickup update.