Nine Cars Americans Keep the Longest

[BlackGTP]

By Douglas A. McIntyre, Michael B. Sauter, Alexander E.M. Hess and Samuel Weigley

Published November 07, 2012

24/7 Wall St.

Owning a car for many years can be considered a sign of brand loyalty. The car is well made, or perhaps it retains its value better than other vehicles. Each of those factors should help the reputation of the car maker. On the other hand, the longer a customer owns a car, the longer before he or she trades it in for a new one — which is what makes the manufacturer money.

This story was originally published by 24/7 Wall St.

Does the length of a car ownership really cut both ways? Not really, according to an analysis by 24/7 Wall St. The relationship between the length of car ownership and loyalty is weak at best.

Based on data provided by Edmunds.com, 24/7 Wall St. examined the 30 largest brands sold in the United States measured by unit volume to find the average length of car ownership for each make. The brands people hold for long periods have several characteristics in common. Most sell very few units and therefore have a small market share. Jaguar owners hold their cars for seven years, but in a good month the brand sells just 1,000 units. Similarly, Volvo and Mitsubishi — also high on our list for years of ownership — sell around 4,000 units per month.

In an interview with 24/7 Wall St., Edmunds.com analyst Jeremy Acevedo explained that shrinking market share also plays a major role in the age of traded-in vehicles. In several cases, the fact that far fewer of these vehicles are being sold today means the average age of those vehicles is necessarily going to be older. Sales of seven of the nine makes on our list declined by more than 20% between 2007 and 2011. Sales of Mitsubishi dropped by 38.6% during that period, while sales of Chrysler sank by nearly 60%.

Another common factor among these brands is the relatively older age of the car owners. Acevedo explained, “frequently, it’s just a prudent fiscal decision to hang on to your car for longer.” It is likely that this decision is especially important for seniors because “driving is less of an imperative, if they’re retired they may not be driving around as much as younger drivers.”

While the national... more at link



Read more: http://www.foxbusiness.com/industrie...#ixzz2C210Up15

[BlackGTP]

I wonder if Buick is so bad because they are changing who they appeal to. In the past Buick was aimed at the older crowd. Now many of their offerings are more youthful - so are the traditional Buick customers going elsewhere (or passed away?).

[cdp326]

I thought this would be car models, not makes. Either way most of them make sense, particularly Volvo and Jaguar.

Wonder if minivans drove up Dodge/Chrysler figures.

I wonder if Buick is so bad because they are changing who they appeal to. In the past Buick was aimed at the older crowd. Now many of their offerings are more youthful - so are the traditional Buick customers going elsewhere (or passed away?).

Might be going elsewhere, a lot of Buicks from the last several years haven't had direct replacements - LaCrosse is smaller than the LeSabre/Park Avenue were, and Buick's crossovers are either much larger or much smaller than the Rendezvous.

[Mr. Burns]

I wonder if it's because of the poor short term resale value on those brands. I mean if you bought a Chrysler Sebring, it would make zero sense to sell it within 3 years because you'd be taking a huge loss.

[schmallz]

Might be going elsewhere, a lot of Buicks from the last several years haven't had direct replacements - LaCrosse is smaller than the LeSabre/Park Avenue were, and Buick's crossovers are either much larger or much smaller than the Rendezvous.

Where could they possibly have gone? There are only a few cars that are bigger than a Park Avenue, and they ain't nearly as cheap.

[Neanderthal]

This is dumb. Make and MODEL would be significant. This is not.

[cdp326]

Where could they possibly have gone? There are only a few cars that are bigger than a Park Avenue, and they ain't nearly as cheap.

Not bigger than the Park Ave - bigger than the LaCrosse, which isn't really much larger inside than a midsize sedan let alone the few big sedans still out there. Buick's lineup was almost entirely composed of larger sedans for several years (and LaCrosse was the "entry" Buick for a few of those years), so it is a bit of a change.

Or they could have decided against a big car altogether in favor of a crossover as many buyers are doing, and Buick has only had the Enclave to offer.

[63GrandSport001]

I wonder if it's because of the poor short term resale value on those brands. I mean if you bought a Chrysler Sebring, it would make zero sense to sell it within 3 years because you'd be taking a huge loss.

I am of the belief that while people will mention resale value most will not sell the car soon enough to take advantage of the resale value. That 3-5 year window is really important for resale value and honestly if you buy a brand new car and sell it within that window you are taking a huge hit either way. If you keep your vehicle for 8-10 years then the resale value gap really shrinks down to a non factor.

[63GrandSport001]

Not bigger than the Park Ave - bigger than the LaCrosse, which isn't really much larger inside than a midsize sedan let alone the few big sedans still out there. Buick's lineup was almost entirely composed of larger sedans for several years (and LaCrosse was the "entry" Buick for a few of those years), so it is a bit of a change.

Or they could have decided against a big car altogether in favor of a crossover as many buyers are doing, and Buick has only had the Enclave to offer.

There really has been two changes at Buick, because not only were those cars large they were also cheap (low priced and cheaply built).

[cdp326]

There really has been two changes at Buick, because not only were those cars large they were also cheap (low priced and cheaply built).

Yes, Buick's models were mostly separated by pricing rather than by size; say, 10 years ago there was a greater spread between the base prices of the Century and Park Avenue than there is between the Verano and LaCrosse today. That said, the original point was that their largest car today is smaller than most of their previous lineup. They're safer, more luxurious, etc. but not any larger, which might turn some current owners off. Not that big sedans are as big a market as they were, but they're there, and there's the new Impala to better target large sedans in size and content.

(Arguably the better build quality isn't inherent to just Buick but GM as a whole, especially since Buicks tended to rank higher in quality surveys IIRC.)

[F14CRAZY]

They only counted when they're traded in. Subaru's are kept forever and are just passed down

[funkypunnk]

Well, there it is in black and white, Buick is still Grandpa's brand although he is a little younger. I guess no matter what GM tries to do to change Buick, in the end it is the consumers who will decide, and it doesn't look like too many are lining up!