Dealers Looking at Possible Used Vehicle Price Drops After Auction Bidding Frenzy
Used vehicle prices sold at auction are very hot right now ? probably too much. Tight inventory of new vehicles has been driving bidding frenzy at auctions, especially for fuel-efficient vehicles. Dealers say retail demand for those vehicles has yet to catch up with wholesale, and warn that used-vehicle auction prices could drop sharply.
Fleets Ready to Surpass PEV Sales Goal by 2015
While President Obama's challenge that one million plug-in electric vehicles make it to American roads by 2015 appeared to some observers as a lofty dream, fleet managers appear to be going even farther than this benchmark within that time frame. A recent report from Pike Research forecasts that by 2015, more than 1.3 million PEVs will be purchased for use in fleet operations.
Black Book Editor Notes Dealer Reluctance to Pay Premium Wholesale Prices
In talks with dealers, Black Book managing editor Ricky Beggs is getting a sense of "obvious reluctance" in paying higher premiums at auction. Overall wholesale unit prices dipped for the first time since early March. Cars continued to move well, but some truck segments saw significant declines.
Synthetics, Corn Ethanol Battle for Biofuels Lead
As Congress hammers out the next federal budget, producers of two diverging camps of biofuels producers are striving to take the lead for government support. On one side is a collection of small companies, some backed by the oil industry, that are developing synthetic, non-ethanol biofuels. On the other is the corn ethanol industry, which is eager to expand its potential market.
Senators Ask DOE to Increase Hydrogen Fuel Cell Research
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has asked the Energy Dept. to increase funding for research and development of fuel cell vehicles and other uses of hydrogen. The senators noted that several automakers are planning for commercial fuel cell electric vehicle launches beginning in 2014-15, and hope to influence the 2012 budget debates.
