US Automotive Trends of 2020 Amid Covid-19 Recession

August 24, 2020

Many of the projections analysts forecast for the 2020 automotive industry were thrown for a loop thanks to Covid-19. Still, it is interesting to learn what trends, sales insights, and new technology industry experts were expecting before the world paused to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

⁵In March 2020 U.S. automobile sales plummeted to the lowest monthly rate since December of 1981 during the Reagan recession. 1

⁵Asian automakers like Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, and more recently Hyundai and Kia have become household brands in the United States. Although American cars are not popular in Japan, China, or South Korea; Asian automobiles are some of the most popular in the U.S. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Honda and Toyota vehicles are believed to be better quality than domestic vehicles.

Just like domestic vehicles, Asian and Japanese automobiles need maintenance and eventually require repair as parts wear out.

Asian automakers were projected to cash in $729,376.6m in global passenger vehicle sales in 2020.³

“70% of all Asian brand vehicle sales worldwide were forecast to occur in the United States in 2020.”³

In 2020 the most popular vehicle in Texas is the Nissan Altima, and it’s also the most stolen vehicle according to an article by Insurify. ⁴

And not only is it the most popular vehicle in the great state of Texas, but it’s also the most purchased vehicle in all southern, southeast, and southwest states.⁴

In 2020 the Ford F-150 has kept its title (as of August 2020) as the best-selling automobile in the United States, and it has been since 1981.²

SOURCES

1. ”Total Vehicle Sales (TOTALSA) | FRED”, updated August 7, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2020 from: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/TOTALSA

2. ”The all-new Ford F-150 pickup arrives this week. Here’s why it’s been America’s best-selling truck for over four decades.” June 23, 2020, author DeBord, Matthew. Retrieved August 22, 2020 from: https://www.businessinsider.com/new-ford-f-150-pickup-why-its-americas-bestselling-truck-2020-6

3. Asian Passenger Cars Highlights for 2020, Retrieved August 24, 2020 from: https://www.statista.com/outlook/1000000/101/passenger-cars/asia

4. “The Most Popular Cars by State”, published May 11, 2020 on insurify.com. Retrieved August 22, 2020 from: https://insurify.com/insights/most-popular-cars-by-state-2020/

5. 5. “United States Total Vehicle Sales 1993-2020 | 2021-2022 Forecast”, Trading Economics. Retrieved August 22, 2020 from: https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/total-vehicle-sales