Despite a decline in U.S. car sales in 2019 compared with 2018, sales exceeded 17 million for the fifth year in a row. In early 2020, some analysts predicted that sales this year would fall below 17 million — and that was before the coronavirus pandemic ground the economy to a halt.
When travel restrictions and stay-at-home orders begin to lift, automakers and dealerships will no doubt hope buyers will rush to buy new cars. And based on 2019 figures, some models will likely be in much greater demand than others.
One way to measure demand for vehicles is to look at the average number of days a car sits in a dealership lot before being sold. Car pricing and data company Kelly Blue Book provided 24/7 Wall St. with this data for 2019 in the U.S. market. We reviewed the 25 models that spent the fewest days on average in dealer inventory before being sold. On average, across all models sold in 2019, cars sat on dealers’ lots for 80 days. All the cars on this list sold on average in less than 53 days. All car sales data were obtained from Kelly Blue Book. Base price either came from manufacturer websites for the most recent version of the vehicle.
These 25 highly in-demand models generally fall into one of a few categories, and often several of these categories at once. Matching a long-term auto buying trend in the U.S. most of the cars on this list are crossover SUVs, which have remained highly popular for years as full-size sedans have struggled to find favor.
Also, Americans want either redesigns of long-popular models — such as the Subaru Forester, which dealerships began to sell at the end of 2018 — or brand new model nameplates, such as the Kia Telluride or the Hyundai Palisade. This is a list of the cars that have been completely redesigned for 2020.
Click here to see the cars so hot they’re out of stock
Click here to see the cars Americans don’t want to buy
Source: Courtesy of Lincoln
25. Lincoln Navigator
> Avg. days on lot: 52.1
> 2019 sales: 18,656
> 2018 sales: 17,839
> Base price: $76,185
> Parent company: Ford Motor Co.
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Source: Neilson Barnard / Getty Images
24. Acura RDX
> Avg. days on lot: 51.6
> 2019 sales: 62,876
> 2018 sales: 63,580
> Base price: $37,800
> Parent company: Honda Motor Company
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Source: TTTNIS / Wikimedia Commons
23. Lexus NX
> Avg. days on lot: 50.0
> 2019 sales: 58,715
> 2018 sales: 62,079
> Base price: $36,870
> Parent company: Toyota Motor Corp.
Source: Courtesy of Subaru
22. Subaru Outback
> Avg. days on lot: 49.3
> 2019 sales: 181,178
> 2018 sales: 178,854
> Base price: $26,645
> Parent company: Subaru Corp.
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Source: Courtesy of Subaru of America
21. Subaru Impreza
> Avg. days on lot: 48.7
> 2019 sales: 66,415
> 2018 sales: 76,400
> Base price: $18,695
> Parent company: Subaru Corp.
Source: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images
20. Volvo XC40
> Avg. days on lot: 48.2
> 2019 sales: 17,706
> 2018 sales: 12,349
> Base price: $33,700
> Parent company: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group
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Source: Courtesy of BMW
19. BMW X5
> Avg. days on lot: 47.7
> 2019 sales: 54,595
> 2018 sales: 45,013
> Base price: $58,900
> Parent company: BMW Group
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Source: Courtesy of Audi
18. Audi TT
> Avg. days on lot: 44.5
> 2019 sales: 1,324
> 2018 sales: 1,273
> Base price: $45,500
> Parent company: Volkswagen Group
Source: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
17. Toyota C-HR
> Avg. days on lot: 43.3
> 2019 sales: 48,930
> 2018 sales: 49,642
> Base price: $21,295
> Parent company: Toyota Motor Corp.
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Source: Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz USA
16. Mercedes-Benz A-Class
> Avg. days on lot: 40.7
> 2019 sales: 16,561
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $32,800
> Parent company: Daimler AG
Source: AUDI AG from Ingolstadt, Deutschland / Wikimedia Commons
15. Audi allroad
> Avg. days on lot: 39.3
> 2019 sales: 1,143
> 2018 sales: 2,520
> Base price: $
> Parent company: Volkswagen Group
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Source: Drew Angerer / Getty Images
14. Toyota RAV4
> Avg. days on lot: 36.4
> 2019 sales: 448,068
> 2018 sales: 427,168
> Base price: $25,950
> Parent company: Toyota Motor Corp.
Source: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images
13. Toyota Supra
> Avg. days on lot: 36.0
> 2019 sales: 1,921
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $49,990
> Parent company: Toyota Motor Corp.
Source: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images
12. Cadillac XT6
> Avg. days on lot: 35.5
> 2019 sales: 11,559
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $57,095
> Parent company: General Motors
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Source: Drew Angerer / Getty Images
11. Subaru Ascent
> Avg. days on lot: 34.7
> 2019 sales: 81,958
> 2018 sales: 36,211
> Base price: $31,995
> Parent company: Subaru Corp.
Source: Duane Prokop / Getty Images
10. Jeep Gladiator
> Avg. days on lot: 34.0
> 2019 sales: 39,924
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $33,545
> Parent company: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
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Source: Robert Hradil / Getty Images
9. BMW X7
> Avg. days on lot: 33.2
> 2019 sales: 21,574
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $73,900
> Parent company: BMW Group
24/7 Wall St.8. Audi e-tron
> Avg. days on lot: 33.1
> 2019 sales: 5,369
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $74,800
> Parent company: Volkswagen Group
Source: Courtesy of Subaru
7. Subaru Crosstrek
> Avg. days on lot: 28.5
> 2019 sales: 131,152
> 2018 sales: 144,384
> Base price: $22,145
> Parent company: Subaru Corp.
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Source: Courtesy of Audi of America
6. Audi Q3
> Avg. days on lot: 25.7
> 2019 sales: 14,805
> 2018 sales: 16,828
> Base price: $34,700
> Parent company: Volkswagen Group
Source: Courtesy of Ford Motor Company
5. Lincoln Aviator
> Avg. days on lot: 24.8
> 2019 sales: 8,323
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $51,100
> Parent company: Ford Motor Co.
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Source: Robert Hradil / Getty Images
4. Subaru Forester
> Avg. days on lot: 21.2
> 2019 sales: 180,179
> 2018 sales: 171,613
> Base price: $24,495
> Parent company: Subaru Corp.
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3. Hyundai Palisade
> Avg. days on lot: 18.7
> 2019 sales: 28,353
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $31,775
> Parent company: Hyundai Motor Group
Source: Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz
2. Mercedes-Benz G-Class
> Avg. days on lot: 16.5
> 2019 sales: 7,348
> 2018 sales: 3,970
> Base price: $130,900
> Parent company: Daimler AG
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1. Kia Telluride
> Avg. days on lot: 13.0
> 2019 sales: 58,604
> 2018 sales: none
> Base price: $31,890
> Parent company: Hyundai Motor Group
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