Despite a variety of factors slowing economic recovery worldwide, local automotive dealers are reporting a steady increase in business.
"We are really encouraged, and it seems, a bit, every month it is getting better," said Denny Aldridge, general manager at James Wood Autopark. "We are looking at somewhere between 17 [percent] to 18 percent increase in car sales in 2011 versus 2010."
Bill Utter Ford is also reporting an uptick, according to Carl Anderson, general manager. DRC/Al Key James Wood Autopark View larger More photos Photo store DRC/Al Key Bill Utter Ford View larger More photos Photo store DRC/Al Key Huffines Kia View larger More photos Photo store
"Over the last year, we are up 20 percent in both new and old car sales. ... We had a good month in June; that was up 22 percent over last June," he said.
Robert Goodwin, general manager of Huffines Kia in Denton, said sales are up 60 percent.
It's possible that rising fuel costs may be a contributing factor in the recent sales boost.
"It's a combination of some of the new products; customers are looking for new, economical vehicles that have a good price and good fuel mileage," he said.
Anderson also noted that trend, saying customers have been trading in their pickups for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Ford Focus and Fiesta.
"We only have one or two [Fiestas] on the ground right now," Anderson said.
Customers not necessarily in the market for a new ride are contributing too, as evidenced by reports of increased activity in local dealerships' maintenance departments.
Road to recovery
After a downturn in early 2009, car dealers had to make adjustments to their business models.
"We [went] from 1.4 million new sales in Texas to 870,000," said Bill Wolters, president of the Texas Automobile Dealers Association. "That is a huge drop-off."
Wolters attributed the decrease in new car sales to the overall poor state of the economy as well as industry-specific challenges, like the discontinuation of several brands.
In order to stay afloat, dealerships across the state were forced to lay off employees and find other ways to sustain themselves, such as relying more on sales of used vehicles and concentrating on parts and service departments.
"The used car market has been a strong part of the business over the last couple of years," he said.
The closures of more than 100 dealerships across the state within the past few years are the result of such restructuring, but ultimately proved beneficial, Wolters said.
"We did not have the real estate issues that other states had, and our unemployment is 1 percent less than the national average," he said. "It is a much better dealership market than the rest of the country."
The automotive industry is anticipating a 5 percent to 8 percent increase in sales this year.
"It will take us four to five years to get back to where we were before the downturn," he said. "The good thing about Texas is that we have a growing population, a good tax structure."
KARINA RAMÍREZ can be reached at 940-566-6878. Her e-mail address is kramirez@dentonrc.com.
By the numbers
New motor vehicle registration statistics for the state of Texas:
* 2003: 1,284,893
* 2004: 1,256,385
* 2005: 1,284,460
* 2006: 1,302,253
* 2007: 1,390,745
* 2008: 1,192,701
* 2009: 877,118
* 2010: 933,118
SOURCE: R.L. Polk & Co.
