Commentary
Chief Executive Officer of Edmunds.com. Follow @JeremyAnwyl on Twitter.
contact: editorsAO@edmunds.comArticles by this author:
Honda Wakes Up
December 6, 2011There is a piece in this week’s Automotive News headlined “Honda’s Fuel-Efficiency Goal: No. 1.” It caught my eye because I had been talking with reporters last week about how I thought it is strange that Honda had allowed other car companies to establish market credibility with technologies designed to improve the efficiency of the internal-combustion engine. more
More On CAFE
November 18, 2011Back before I was a witness before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I wrote a column critical of a report published by Ceres, a through that bills itself as leading a national coalition of investors, environmental organizations and other public interest groups. The report had been making the rounds in Washington, and I had problems with many of the report conclusions. Ceres wasn’t happy with my critique, and we posted its response a few weeks back. more
November Car Sales Pace Encouraging
November 17, 2011Midway through month, the November car sales picture is taking shape, and the shape looks encouraging with the pace showing a lift from earlier in the month, albeit a slight one. Retail sales now look like they will finish the month around 814,000 vehicles, which equates to a Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) of car sales of 11 million vehicle sales. This compares with sales of 831,000 vehicles for a retail SAAR of 10.8 million last month. If we assume a fleet mix of around 18.5 percent, then November will end with total sales of 998,000 vehicles and a more
Consumer Reports Survey Flawed
November 16, 2011I am a bit surprised a group with the stature of Consumer Reports didn't think a bit deeper before touting the results of its latest survey that claims consumers want better fuel economy and are willing to pay for it. The upshot of Consumer Reports’ survey shows that 93 percent of 1,008 people interviewed by phone in late October support a fuel-economy standard of 55 mpg or more. The survey results were released Tuesday; the federal government was set to announce Wednesday the proposed rules for implementing a 54.5 miles-per-gallon fuel economy standard for automakers to meet by 2025. more
Where Are Oil Prices Headed?
November 15, 2011We have been ruminating at Edmunds.com about oil prices. Since March of this year, the sales share of hybrids has been dropping even as fuel prices have remained high. Yet we have been tracking a growing shift back toward larger vehicles. This is interesting, as logic would suggest that if fuel prices are holding at high levels, sales patterns should be stable as well. more
Early November Sales
November 10, 2011Looking at sales for the first week of November, sales look very similar to October. In fact, we seem to have settled into a pacing since September of a Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) of just slightly over 13 million. more
What Can We Infer From October Sales?
October 31, 2011From a forecasting perspective, October is unusual in that the estimates seem to be in tight agreement. They range from a Seasonally Adjust Annual Rate (SAAR) of sales from 13.2 million to 13.4 million vehicles. Where I would have to differ from the other forecasters is in interpreting what the sales results mean. more
Take Polls With A Grain Of Salt
October 28, 2011One of the more interesting exchanges during my recent testimony to a Congressional Oversight Committee was triggered by a line of questions from Congresswoman Jackie Speier. (D-CA). Congresswoman Speier’s staffers had dug up a press release from Ford citing a Maritz study that found consumers viewed fuel economy as extremely important. She was citing this study in an apparent attempt to undermine a key point of my testimony: Consumers generally weigh other vehicle attributes as more important than fuel economy. more
Why Is EPA Setting Mileage Standards?
October 21, 2011There is a piece in Friday’s Detroit News about efforts to derail the soon-to-be-proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. The article covers efforts in the House of Representatives that would bar U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Environmental Protection Agency's Air Resources Board (CARB) from setting fuel-economy standards (this was an area of questioning at the Congressional hearing last Wednesday held by the House Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs, Stimulus Oversight and Government Spending at which I testified). more
Thoughts On December Sales And SAAR
December 10, 2011Last week’s auto sales reporting generated a buzz in the media with the news that November sales “exceeded expectations” and hit 13.6 million on a Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate basis. more