Vehicle Remarketing Logo

New Vehicle Sales Fall for First Time in Seven Years

The auto industry sold 17.2 million new vehicles in 2017, 1.8% less than in 2016, breaking a seven-year streak of year-over-year sales growth, according to data from Motor Intelligence.

by Staff
January 5, 2018
New Vehicle Sales Fall for First Time in Seven Years

Photo by Eric Gandarilla.

2 min to read


Photo by Eric Gandarilla.

The auto industry sold 17.2 million new vehicles in 2017, 1.8% less than in 2016, breaking a seven-year streak of year-over-year sales growth, according to data from Motor Intelligence.

Of the 17.2 million vehicles sold, roughly 10.9 million were trucks while 6.3 million were cars. As has been the case for the last several years, the market share of trucks versus cars continued to lean in trucks’ favor.

Ad Loading...

In 2017, trucks accounted for 63.4% of new vehicle sales while cars accounted for 36.6%; in 2016 the split was 59.4% trucks and 40.6% cars.

Although vehicle sales were boosted in the months surrounding Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, much of 2017 lagged in terms of sales versus the same period in 2016. Sales in the last month of 2017 were particularly weak. Out of all of the manufacturers that sell in the U.S. only six — Subaru, Daimler AG, BMW, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, and Ford — saw year-over-year sales growth in December.

Looking at full-year 2017, the only domestic brand to see higher full-year sales last year compared to 2016 was Tesla Motors. All other brands to see higher year-over-year sales were imports — Honda, Nissan, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Jaguar Land Rover, Porsche, Ferrari, and Maserati.

The volume sold by these companies, however, was significantly less than the volume sold by the companies that saw a fall in sales in 2017, resulting in the 1.8% year-over-year drop for full-year sales.

More Used Vehicle Values

Collage of CAR speakers
Used Vehicle Valuesby Chris BrownApril 27, 2026

CAR2026 in Two Words: Velocity, Value (Part 1)

The 2026 Conference of Automotive Remarketing convened with a mandate to involve a new constituency — fleet managers — and an updated mission to demonstrate unrealized value in de-fleeted vehicles.

Read More →
Line comparisons of used vehicle inventory set in different colors.
Fleetby News/Media ReleaseApril 20, 2026

March Used Vehicle Inventory Falls To Lowest Since 2019

Franchised and independent dealers had a total of 1.95 million used vehicles in stock in March, the lowest on record in the current data set.

Read More →
 A white Polestar 3 with all doors and trunk lid open while on display at an EV sales event.

Spring Bounce Pushes Q1 Used Vehicle Values Higher

Demand signals remain strong at auctions, with sales conversions, a clear sign of demand, reaching 68.2% in the most recent measure.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Graphic promoting CAR 2026 roundtables featuring headshots of five speakers and topics including Wall Street trends, fleet data, upfits, fair market value, and AI in remarketing.
Operationsby Chris BrownMarch 31, 2026

CAR 2026: Get the Wall Street Update on the Key Players in Remarketing

From a Wall Street analyst's take on remarketing's key players to whether fleets need their own version of Carfax, CAR 2026's afternoon roundtables will answer key operational and industry questions.

Read More →
Promotional graphic for CAR 2026 panel on data-driven value in commercial vehicles, featuring five industry experts and session details for April 16 in Cleveland.
Fleetby Chris BrownMarch 31, 2026

CAR 2026 Session to Uncover the Missing Data That's Costing Fleets at Disposal

Work trucks lose value at remarketing, not because they aren't worth more, but because the data to prove it rarely makes it to the auction.

Read More →
Chart highlighting February EV sales trends, showing a decline in new EV sales and growth in used EV sales based on Cox Automotive market data.
Fleetby News/Media ReleaseMarch 19, 2026

EV Market Feeling The New Reality Of Steep Losses

New EV sales declined year over year in February while used EV demand rose, as prices fell and inventory tightened across both segments.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Graphic promoting a CAR 2026 conference session showing four speaker headshots above the title “What Really Moves Vehicle Value Now — And What Doesn’t” with automotive conference branding
Operationsby Chris BrownMarch 11, 2026

CAR 2026: What Really Moves Vehicle Value Now — And What Doesn’t

A panel at the 2026 Conference of Automotive Remarketing will examine how resale value is created across the vehicle lifecycle and which traditional remarketing practices still deliver ROI.

Read More →
Blue bar graphs showing a rise in used vehicle categories across the board.

Wholesale Used Vehicle Prices Up In February

Solid demand at Manheim auctions with higher sales conversion rates indicate an appetite from dealers to buy.

Read More →
A collage of two photos of day cab trucks above a checklist for maximizing resale values.
Used Vehicle ValuesMarch 1, 2026

How To Maximize TCO and Resale Value in Day Cab Fleets

Smart operational and spec'ing decisions can dramatically improve both the total cost of ownership during use and the resale value when it's time to remarket day cabs.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Image of rows of cars and a shopping cart.
Used Vehicle Valuesby Chris BrownMarch 1, 2026

How to Drive Better Returns on De-Fleeted Vehicles in 2026

Smart remarketing begins before vehicles enter the fleet, and is built on strong data and stronger FMC partnerships.

Read More →