2016 – another big year for the U.S. auto industry?

Yes, this year will go down as another big year for the U.S. auto industry. The question is whether it will go down as another record year. Following a strong November showing, total U.S. sales through 11 months this year have surpassed those through the same point in 2015, which went down as the strongest sales year on record. But the difference is razor-thin – just 6,418 units. 

J.D. Power and LMC Automotive, in a forecast released Thursday, said 2016 should reach 17.5 million vehicles sold, breaking 2015’s annual sales record by only about 26,000 units. That would mark a seventh straight year of increases. The last time that happened was more than a century ago, in a streak spurred by Ford’s Model T. Elevated inventories, a slow model-year transition and record incentive levels point to the challenges the industry will face in 2017. Going forward, automakers must maintain production and pricing discipline to achieve profitability, which is easier said than done. Read more