Buyers looking for car deals during this pandemic are entering what most would consider a “seller’s market.” New and used car inventory is shrinking and our friends at iSeeCars.com compiled the models that sell the quickest. Some of these cars may not be what you expect.
Now it’s important to note that the sales data for these models were primarily taken from a pre-COVID sales period as iSeeCars.com explains:
“Analysing over 9 million new and used cars sold from November 2019 through June 2020, iSeeCars.com found that overall, the average new car takes 96.9 days to sell between March and June compared to 57.8 days during the pre-COVID timeframe of November 2019 through February 2020. For used cars, the average time to sell for March through June is 68.9 days compared to 50.1 days pre-COVID.”
Editor’s Note: This data is based on U.S. sales.
Even still, looking at what cars sat on the lot in for the shortest amount of time during the last year is interesting, especially when the top car is not something most of us here at Gizmodo would have predicted to be an in-demand car.
That’s right, the Chevy Trailblazer, a subcompact crossover that shares a platform with the Buick Encore (also on the list), and a starting price of around $27,000 only sat on the lot for an average of 19 days before finding a customer. iSeeCars indicates that the Korean-made Trailblazer got hit with inventory shortages when COVID impacted Asian markets. According to Autotrader, there are well over 1,000 Trailblazers currently listed for sale in the U.S., so the market may have changed a bit as of late.
As for the other cars on the list, the Telluride and Palisade are no surprise since Kia and Hyundai vastly underestimated the American consumer’s demand for a giant three-row SUV. Some dealers, consequently, have been selling those cars with markups. In terms of used cars, the Model 3 takes the top spot, with the BMW X6 and the BRZ not far behind, while the Tacoma and Ridgeline take the one and two spots for fastest-selling pickups.
This data isn’t always an indicator of which vehicles are the most popular if you’re struggling to find competitive pricing, but the fact that these cars in particular don’t sit for long is a key reason why dealers may not be willing to give you the discount you want.
For the full report, check out iSeeCars.com