Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, MPG, Lightweight, USA
With gas prices on the rise, U.S. consumers are turning to fuel-efficient compact vehicles, according to a study conducted by GfK Automotive. Surprisingly, demand for subcompact vehicles has remained relatively low despite an uptick in pump prices.
According to GfK Automotive, compact vehicles accounted for 18.1 percent of what it refers to as "six-month demand" in May of 2011. That compares to just 3.6 percent for subcompact vehicles. GfK Automotive found that there's a strong correlation between surges in gas prices and increased demand for subcompact and compact vehicles. However, when given the choice between a subcompact with a fuel economy rating of 40 miles per gallon highway and a compact that returns identical numbers, U.S. consumers strongly favor the roomier vehicle.
Doug Scott, senior vice president of consulting at GfK Automotive, says that:
Guess sometimes size does matter!While consumers are looking at smaller vehicles due to high gas prices, they aren't willing to go all the way down to a subcompact car. Consumers are discovering that newer compact cars offer the comfort features before only reserved to larger cars, combined with the fuel economy that was only available in much smaller cars.
[Source: GfK Automotive]
Continue reading Size matters! U.S. consumers prefer compacts over subcompacts
Size matters! U.S. consumers prefer compacts over subcompacts originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 19:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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