SUV sales are set to fall, says industry survey


dpa German Press Agency
Published: Tuesday January 23, 2007

London­ The heyday of the SUV or sports utility vehicle is over, according to an industry survey among leading car executives. It predicts that sales in the sector will slump. The four-wheel drive market seems to have become the main victim of rising fuel prices and increasing consumer interest in owning an environmentally-friendly vehicle, says the report by tax specialists KPMG.

A mere 3 per cent of North American automotive executives canvassed by KPMG expect to see the SUV sector grow in in 2007. Europeans were more confident (39 per cent - down 50 per cent from last year)

Most of the 150 car company executives questioned for the survey said also that they thought the rise in the cost of fuel would impact most on the future purchasing habits of car buyers.

Commenting on the findings, Mike Steventon, Head of Automotive at KPMG in Britain, said, "These results highlight the extent to which the industry is having to adapt and realign itself to changing customer preferences.

"The principal casualty of these changing preferences is the SUV, which has experienced substantial year on year growth for the past decade."

Steventon said the automotive trends of the future were likely to be hybrids, which generally use a diesel engine aided by an electric motor, and low-cost cars.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency