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FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. - May 2001 truck sales are down nearly 3 percent from the same month last year and down about 8 percent year-to-date compared with 2000 sales, the National Truck Equipment Association (NTEA) reported on its Web site from retail sales data supplied by Ward’s Communications.
Overall, NTEA’s U.S. Retail Truck Sales data showed that franchised dealers of U.S. truck manufacturers sold 734,263 units in May 2001, compared to 755,023 in May 2000, and year-to-date sales total 3,257,629 units compared to 3,521,953 units sold in the same period last year.
Truck sales in Classes 3 through 5, those trucks commonly used by lawn and landscape contractors, showed varying degrees of sales drops and rises for different time periods this year compared to the same periods in 2000, according to NTEA’s data.
Among the steepest sales drops in trucks typically used by contractors were Class 3 trucks (10,001-14,000 pounds), dropping 19 percent in May compared to last year and dropping almost 21 percent year-to-date. The next hardest hit category among mid-range vehicles is Class 5 trucks (16,001-19,500 pounds) with a drop of almost 14 percent for May and more than 14 percent year-to-date compared to the same periods in 2000.
| Contractors Purchasing Trucks in 1999 | |
| TRUCK PURCHASES BY CONTRACTORS | |
| Total | 48.9% |
| TRUCK PURCHASES BY GEOGRAPHIC REGION | |
| Northeast | 56.4% |
| Midwest | 47.4% |
| South | 41.5% |
| West | 53.3% |
| TRUCK PURCHASES BY TYPE OF COMPANY | |
| Landscape Construction | 57.8% |
| Lawn Maintenance | 41.3% |
| Lawn Care | 40.0% |
| Ornamental Tree & Shrub Care | 50.0% |
| Irrigation | 66.7% |
| Landscape Architect | 48.4% |
| Other | 11.1% |
| SOURCE: Research USA | |
However, Class 4 trucks (14,001-16,000 pounds) are the only Gross Vehicle Weight Rating category to experience growth so far this year. May sales for Class 4 trucks were up 10 percent compared to the same month last year. Additionally, year-to-date sales have climbed 9 percent over last year.
Chris Fountain, sales representative for Middle Georgia Freightliner, Macon, Ga., said higher fuel prices have contributed directly to overall declines in truck sales. "If the fuel price wasn’t so high, our sales would probably be at a higher level than they were last year," he explained, adding that Middle Georgia Freightliner has about doubled sales each of the past four to five years of its stock of Freightliner and Isuzu trucks.
The sales declines at Middle Georgia Freightliner have not been in the landscape industry segment, said Fountain. He continued that any sales drops among that set of buyers is more likely to be associated with truck turnover. "Normally a truck is turned over every three to four years," he said. "We may be in the middle of one of those turnover lulls."
Fountain’s speculation may be validated by a recent Lawn & Landscape study showing that 48.9 percent of lawn and landscape contractors purchased trucks in 1999. More specifically, among contractors in the South - Middle Georgia Freightliner’s market area - more than 41 percent of contractors purchased trucks in 1999.
The author is Internet Editor for Lawn & Landscape magazine.
| New Truck Sales by Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) - including imports of U.S. manufacturers) | |||||||
| MAY | YEAR-TO-DATE | ||||||
| TRUCK CLASS | 2001 | 2000 | CHANGE | 2001 | 2000 | CHANGE | |
| Class 1 (0-6,000 lbs.) | 469,539 | 468,414 | +0.2% | 2,073,478 | 2,220,263 | -6.6% | |
| Class 2 (6,001-10,000 lbs.) | 221,258 | 230,819 | -4.1% | 989,261 | 1,038,634 | -4.8% | |
| Class 3 (10,001-14,000 lbs.) | 8,562 | 10,585 | -19.1% | 40,450 | 50,989 | -20.7% | |
| Class 4 (14,001-16,000 lbs.) | 4,978 | 4,521 | +10.1% | 22,920 | 21,016 | +9.1% | |
| Class 5 (16,001-19,500 lbs.) | 2,413 | 2,804 | -13.9% | 10,594 | 12,382 | -14.4% | |
| Class 6 (19,501-26,000 lbs.) | 4,128 | 4,921 | -16.1% | 17,849 | 23,344 | -23.5% | |
| Class 7 (26,001-33,000 lbs.) | 9,666 | 11,912 | -18.9% | 42,014 | 55,347 | -24.1% | |
| Class 8 (33,001 lbs. +) | 13,719 | 21,047 | -34.8% | 61,063 | 99,978 | -38.9% | |
| TOTAL | 734,263 | 755,023 | -2.7% | 3,257,629 | 3,521,953 | -7.5% | |
| SOURCE: NTEA and Ward's Communications | |||||||