United States – With the impact of the pandemic, medium-duty vehicle sales (amongst many other products) had slower sales in 2020. While posting sales of 14,809 in May of 2020, May 2021 had sales increase by 36%, reaching 20,134 according to WardsAuto.com.
“Private fleets and lease and rental fleets are driving the demand, largely, and most of what is occurring is replacement activity,” said ACT Research Vice President Steve Tam.
Class 4 and Class 5 vehicles saw a large improvement in sales. In total, both sold 11,458, rising 35% from 2020 numbers of 8,469. Class 6 vehicles escalated greatly in sales to 4,767, selling 64.5% more in 2021 than 2020. Heavier duty trucks have struggled to grow since last May, with sales in Class 7 vehicles being 3,909, dropping 30.2% from the 2020 period.
Overall, sales increased by 36% for Class 4-7 vehicles.
Medium-duty trucks are mainly used for work, commercial, and utility purposes. With the nation following stay-at-home orders, May of 2020 saw a lack of demand for these service trucks and any necessary upgrades for existing drivers. All but Class 5 vehicles saw a decline in sales in 2020, building on the 20% rise in class 5 in 2019.
Now looking towards a future without the pandemic, May’s results tell service truck manufacturers and customers they can be confident things will return back to normal.