Used commercial vehicle registrations (Class 3-8) in the United States achieved a record level in 2010 with about 672,000 units registered, according to Polk, a provider of data-driven solutions for the commercial vehicle industry. This represents an increase in used commercial vehicle registrations of 21.7 percent over 2009. With this increase, used commercial vehicle registrations accounted for nearly 65 percent of the total commercial vehicle market (new and used) in 2010.
According to Polk, this is the first year registrations of used commercial vehicles have exceeded 600,000 units. The demand for clean used equipment was greatest for GVW 8 vehicles as they represented more than 47 percent of all used commercial vehicle transactions in 2010, according to Polk. The uptick in the used market signifies a large opportunity for aftermarket parts manufacturers and suppliers that rely on the commercial repair and replacement business.
“The significant increase in used vehicle registrations during the 2010 calendar year is indicative of a strengthening in the demand for commercial vehicles overall,” says Gary Meteer, director of sales and client services at Polk. “Large fleet owners and operators are upgrading to new vehicles, and therefore the smaller fleet companies and independent owner-operators have the opportunity to find available clean used equipment. However, the pattern of used vehicle transactions indicates a softer supply of clean used equipment during the last quarter of the calendar year.”
