Sport Utility Vehicle Predictions

04/03/96

Ward's Communications has just released a report on the future of Sports Utility Vehicles: it looks rosy. In the next two years 14 automotive brands are expected to introduce new SUVs and SUV sales are expected to continue to rise for the rest of the century--although the rate of that increase will slow, nearing the overall light vehicle growth rate by the end of the 1990s.

Price competition in the SUV market will increase, especially at the luxury and cheapo ends, as it shifts from favoring sellers to favoring buyers. These developments will benefit consumers who have paid substantially more for SUV's than they would have paid for the pickups on which most SUVs are based.

Domestic automakers continue to dominate the U.S. SUV market. They sold 80% of 1995's record 1.76 million SUVs, and the high profit margin on the vehicles has been credited with helping to finance their economic recovery.

Other predictions from Ward's special report on SUVs, as reported by United Press International:

SUV volume will grow by nearly a half million units to 2.2 million by 2001; that's more than 10 times the number sold in 1982.

SUVs will continue to become more like family vehicles through 2001, with additional luxury features and safety equipment.

SUVs have become the focus of automotive innovations, such as new styling and design trends, and are surpassing luxury and sports cars as marketing test beds for hot new technology features.

New, unconventional types of SUVs will emerge in the next few years, including car-based models and minivan/SUV hybrids.

Japanese manufacturers are developing smaller, car-based SUVs with softer rides and better fuel economy; these will challenge the larger, truck-based American SUVs in the emerging international market.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel