Small Car Segments Buck Seasonality Trend

Tax season momentum, particularly in the smaller car segments, has yet to pick up. According to data from Black Book, a year-on-year comparison shows all the segments are down from the same time in 2015.

“The used vehicle market continued to decline at a steady pace, not showing signs of any tax refund season strength yet,” said Anil Goyal, vice president of Automotive Valuation and Analytics.

Volume-weighted, overall car values decreased by 0.53% last week. This is higher than the average depreciation rate of 0.38% seen in the previous eight weeks, according to Black Book.

The sub-compact car and compact car segments declined the most in value by 1.06% and 1.07%, respectively.

Volume-weighted, overall truck values decreased by 0.42% last week. This is slightly higher than the average depreciation rate of 0.39% seen in the previous eight weeks. The small pickup and compact luxury crossover/SUV segments declined the most by 1.19% and 0.82%, respectively, according to Black Book.