The American automotive industry was battered by the COVID-19 pandemic in the first three quarters of 2020. People could not visit dealerships. Vehicles languished on dealer lots. That started to change late in the year. By the end of 2020, sales began to explode. This continued into 2021, and some models as so scarce people have to wait for more inventory to buy them.
The demand situation has been made worse by a shortage of chips used for car electrical systems. This could last for several months. Manufacturers had hoped for record earning in 2021. Those are threatened by this low chip availability. On the other side of the ledger, car prices, both new and used, have risen, because of light inventories.
iSeeCars measures car inventory. In April, it looked at the sales of 1.3 million new and used cars. The average number of days a car was in a dealer’s inventory after delivery from the factory was 48 days last month. However, some cars are in inventory for a much shorter time. The shortest interval is for the Chevy Corvette, the figure for which is just over nine days. iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer commented: “The fastest-selling new vehicle is the Chevrolet Corvette, which takes on average 9.2 days to sell, nearly four days faster than its February selling time. The new mid-engine Corvette is the fastest-selling new car for the third consecutive month.”
Other cars in inventory for short times are the SUVs and crossovers that have become in high demand by Americans for over a decade. These include the Jeep Wrangler and Kia Telluride.
Some models have languished on lots. These are led by the Ford Fusion at 180 days–a half a year.
The Fusion is among the models Ford discontinued as it exited the sedan market in favor of a line-up of SUVs, crossovers, and pickups. Ford has only 2020 versions of the car. There is not one for 2021. The Fusion represents the kind of vehicle that has fallen out of favor. Although well regarded by researchers and reviewers of cars, it is small and gets good gas mileage. The base Fusion carries a $23,170 price tag.
The 20 Slowest-Selling Cars in America in April
| New Car | Avg. Days to Sell |
|---|---|
| Ford Fusion | 180.0 |
| Honda Fit | 157.3 |
| Honda Insight | 130.3 |
| Dodge Journey | 122.9 |
| INFINITI QX60 | 102.5 |
| Nissan Pathfinder | 101.4 |
| Ford Ecosport | 99.6 |
| Chevrolet Trax | 98.9 |
| Toyota Avalon Hybrid | 98.1 |
| Toyota Avalon | 93.2 |
| Nissan Versa | 92.9 |
| Chevrolet Spark | 89.2 |
| Chevrolet Malibu | 87.8 |
| Cadillac CT4 | 87.5 |
| Lincoln Nautilus | 87.5 |
| Mitsubishi Mirage G4 | 86.9 |
| Cadillac XT4 | 86.7 |
| Chrysler 300 | 85.5 |
| Cadillac CT5 | 84.6 |
| Ford Edge | 84.4 |
Click here to see America’s fastest-selling car.
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