Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of Beggs on the Used Car Market with insights from Ricky Beggs and Black Book. It has been an exciting week for the Editorial team at Black Book. The primary focus of looking at the actual wholesale market activity and values brought some interesting adjustments. More details on that in a few moments.

New products in the marketplace excite and challenge us as we are thinking about future residual values. A couple of our editors got a first-hand look at and feel of the new 2015 Ford Mustang. This is one of the most recognizable car brands of all time.

As part of the 7th Bobit Media Green Fleet Conference, I got insight into the new to the US Mercedes Benz B Class Electric Drive as well as the aftermarket Zenith electric conversion van.

Is this a motorcycle or a car? The 3 wheeled Elio is a future 2 passenger form of transportation that will be registered as a motorcycle without the required helmet or motorcycle endorsed license.

While at the Green Fleet Conference the information discussed about the complete green and sustainable industry was eye opening. It is more than just about hybrids and electric vehicles. CNG and bio-diesel play huge roles in the commercial medium and heavy duty markets. Interestingly, it is not just about the cost to enter this segment of the industry or the cost of ownership or the return on investment. In many cases it is driven by mandates.

Let’s take a look at the results of the editors’ weekly market analysis. With five reporting weeks in October, the one positive was the generally weaker fifth week of the month did not stand out.

The -$79 average car segment change was right in line with the previous two weeks changes and just greater than the total October car segment change of -$74. While looking at the total percentage change of various segments during the entire month of October, and thinking about the recent drop in gas prices, this week down another $.06 to $3.06, the largest drop was with one of the more fuel efficient segments, the Compact Cars at -4.2%. It was followed by the -3.9% of the Full-size Cars and then the -3.5% of the Entry Level Cars.

Within the trucks the -$52 average segment change was much lower than the prior week. The Full-size Vans and Wagons got back to a positive week to week movement while the Full-size Crossovers and the Luxury SUVs continue their higher dollar depreciation at -$132 and -$171 respectively. Is it a seasonal pattern as one year ago the average truck segment change was at -$50 with the Full-size Crossovers and the Luxury SUVs also at -$100 plus declines? It is definitely an interesting market!
Please stay with us as we share with you some market insight from John Brasher of Brasher’s Sacramento Auto Auction.