Has the winter of 2014 altered what kind of vehicle choices are made by drivers? Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, reports a slight change in vehicle preferences this winter, with utility vehicles replacing certain car segments in many locations.

During the previous three winters, a mix of car segments and smaller utility vehicles carried a large percentage of lease shopping preferences. However, this year’s winter weather patterns saw a shift over to more utilities across the country. Old man winter still could not knock off the Upper Mid-Size Car segment, though, as this popular category remained in the top spot despite the weather.

Popular segments in the Upper Mid-Size segment include the Honda Accord, Nissan Altima, Toyota Camry and Ford Taurus. According to Swapalease.com marketplace users, 14.3% of users shopped for cars in this segment since November. While this percentage was an increase over previous years, other utility-type segments saw a much larger jump in vehicle preference. Mid-Size Crossovers saw 14.1% preference (previously 9.2%); Full-Size Crossovers saw 13.2% (previously 7.5%); and Mid-Size SUV saw 11.8% preference (previously 6.9%).

Popular vehicles in the Mid-Size Crossover segment include the Mazda CX-9, Acura MDX, Nissan Murano and Volvo XC90. Smaller cars such as the Entry-Level Cars, and smaller utilities like the Compact Crossovers and Compact SUVs saw the most noticeable exclusion from popular shopping preferences in the Swapalease.com marketplace this winter.

“While it makes sense to see the winter elements encourage a shift to larger utility-type vehicles, the most recent winters did not have this effect on shopping patterns,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Swapalease.com. “However, a consistent wave of arctic-type conditions may have contributed to this winter’s shift in shopping preferences in many parts of the country.”

Swapalease.com is a nationwide marketplace that matches a person wanting out of a vehicle lease with a car shopper looking to pick up what’s left of the lease contract. The person exiting can walk away from the contract with no harm to their credit while the incoming lessee gets a vehicle in quality condition, with no down payment requirements and shorter terms compared with a traditional lease. In most cases leases are transferred with 14-17 months remaining on the contract.

Swapalease.com is the world’s largest automotive lease marketplace and the pioneer in facilitating lease transfers online. More specifically Swapalease.com matches individuals who want to get out of their lease with people who are looking for short-term lease agreements. Prospective buyers can search the listings for the exact vehicle they want, and then register for a nominal fee, allowing them to use Swapalease.com’s safe online system to contact the prospective seller and close the deal.