Two lanes apart at a noisy, fast-paced auto auction near Detroit, two vehicles show why major U.S. automakers have a problem with used cars.
In one lane of the Manheim auction facility, a black 2015 Chevy Malibu sedan with barely 20,000 miles on it sold for just over $13,000, less than half its original sticker price. In the other lane, a white 2013 Chevy Silverado pick-up truck sold for $11,500 – despite having 200,000 miles on the odometer.
America’s renewed lust for new SUVs and trucks instead of smaller cars is already hurting major auto companies, which posted their fourth consecutive month of declining new vehicle sales.
But millions of cars that were leased two or three years ago, many of them used compact and midsized cars with low mileage, are heading toward auction lots and used car dealerships.
For a graphic, click here
That surge in supply threatens to