Nov. Class 8 Sales Rise 1% in Third Consecutive Increase

This story appears in the Dec. 16 print edition of Transport Topics.

Sales of Class 8 trucks slowed in November, gaining just 1% from the same month last year, while marking the third straight month of year-over-year increases, WardsAuto.com reported.

Sales rose to 14,511, well below the two preceding months which logged double-digit percentage growth each month, Ward’s said in its report released Dec. 11.

Still, there may be reason for optimism because the past two Decembers have been strong months for truck sales — with more than 18,000 last year and more than 20,000 in 2011.

December 2011 was the only month to top that level in the past two years, and one truck dealership executive said last week that this December is shaping up to end the year on a high note.

“The fourth quarter is looking good” for overall industry sales, said Ron Remp, president of Volvo dealership Wheeling Truck Center in Wheeling, W.Va., and a member of American Truck Dealers’ board of directors.

“I expect that we’re all going to have a very strong December,” especially because the end of the 50% depreciation allowance that’s set to expire at the end of this year, Remp told Transport Topics.

The three monthly increases were preceded by 12 straight months of year-over-year downturns.

Month-to-month, sales dropped 19.3% from October’s 17,985, which was the highest total of 2013 and the year’s only month to top 17,000.

Despite November’s year-to-year uptick, sales were the lowest since the first quarter, when they came in below 14,000 in each of this year’s first three months.

The sales totals came on the heels of ACT Research’s report earlier this month that heavy-duty truck orders rose 5.7% in November, topping 20,000 for a second straight month. That report followed October’s 26,000-plus order pace, which was the highest in almost two years.

While all original equipment manufacturers had reported higher sales in October, just two OEMs posted year-over-year increases in November: Volvo Trucks, with a 34.4% gain, and Peterbilt Motors Co., with sales up 14%.

“Fleets actively replacing their aging vehicles understand the value of the fuel efficiency and vehicle uptime improvements delivered by our new trucks,” said Magnus Koeck, Volvo Trucks’ vice president of marketing and brand management. “The growing focus on total cost of ownership has given us positive momentum.”

Peterbilt sold 2,266 trucks in November, although its year-to-date total was down more than 9% from a year ago, to 22,263. The Paccar Inc. unit declined to comment last week.

Kenworth Truck Co., also part of Paccar, had almost 10% lower sales than a year ago, at about 2,000 units, while its market share slipped to 13.8% from 15.5% a year ago. Kenworth also declined to comment for this story.

Freightliner Corp.’s industry-leading market share slipped slightly to 34.6% from a year ago and 35.2% in October, though its year-to-date market share rose to 36.9% from 33.1% a year ago.

A unit of Daimler Trucks North America, it sold 5,015 trucks in November, down 5.6% from a year ago, while DTNA’s Western Star brand sales dipped slightly to 191 trucks.

“Daimler’s market leadership is best highlighted by acceptance of the Freightliner Cascadia Evolution, which is pacing the industry in sales, and the Detroit DT12 automated manual transmission,” said David Hames, DTNA’s general manager for marketing and strategy.

“Class 8 year-to-date market share has increased more than 18% since October of last year, driven by increasing brand awareness and acceptance . . . in target segments, including oil and gas, construction and specialty hauling,” Hames said.

Navistar International Corp.’s sales declined 4.9% to 1,862 for the month, while its market share fell to 12.8% from 13.6% a year ago and 17.6% in October.

“While we continue to see mainly replacement demand, our sales momentum initiatives continue to be a top priority, and we are still working with key customers to finalize their 2014 buying plans,” said Bill Kozek, Navistar’s president of North America truck and parts.

Mack Trucks’ sales slipped 1.4% from a year ago to 1,236 units, while its market share held at 8.5% from October and was down slightly from November 2012.

“While replacement demand continues to be the primary driver of Class 8 sales in the on-highway market, we’re encouraged by ongoing signs of life in the construction market as the overall economy, including housing, recovers,” said John Walsh, Mack’s vice president of marketing.

Year-to-date, overall industry truck sales are down 6.5% from last year, at just over 165,000. Despite the lag, that’s the second-strongest 11-month total since 2006, when sales topped 250,000 for the comparable period.

That year’s sales were boosted by “pre-buys” of Class 8 trucks in advance of Environmental Protection Agency emissions regulations that took effect in 2007.