Car shoppers rushed to purchase vehicles ahead of the potential tariff hikes this past weekend.
The past weekend was “by far the best weekend I’ve seen in a very long time,” said Randy Parker, the chief executive officer of Hyundai and Genesis in North America. “Lots of people rushed in this weekend, especially to try and beat the tariffs.”
Tom Maoli, the owner of Celebrity Motor Car Company who runs Lexus, BMW, Ford, and Mercedes dealerships, told Yahoo Finance that over the weekend ““we’re seeing people come in…They’re buying. They want to buy. Now.”
March Rush
Overall, there was a notable increase in automobile sales in March, with around 1.6 million new-vehicles sold in the U.S. The first quarter saw over 3.9 million vehicles sold, with significant growth in electric vehicle sales from nearly all major automakers.
The possibility of increased costs due to tariffs and federal incentives being stopped for EV purchases has prompted many consumers to expedite their car buying decisions, resulting in a sales surge for manufacturers, according to analysts.
Automakers Gains
General Motors (GM) and Hyundai both reported significant increases in sales, as GM’s deliveries soared 17% in the first quarter, with a 15% gain in retail volume. Hyundai saw record sales for the latest month and quarter, buoyed by double-digit gains in demand for its best-selling Tucson small SUV and Elantra compact sedan. For the first three months, Hyundai said Tuesday that it saw a 10% gain in deliveries to 203,554 vehicles, boosted by a 13% jump last month.
Ford saw a 5% quarterly gain in retail sales and 19% jump in March alone, driven by the F-150 pickup and electric vehicles. Honda reported a 5% rise in first—quarter sales and a 13% jump in March across its namesake brand and Acura luxury vehicle lines. Deliveries of the Japanese carmaker’s top-selling CR-V crossover grew 9% in the quarter and 24% last month while reporting an 89.1% rise in electrified vehicle sales.
U.S. sales for Toyota Motor North America rose 7.7% in March. Electric vehicle sales jumping 44.1% in March and represented nearly half of the overall sales volume for the month. For the quarter. total sales for the Japanese automaker rose 0.9%.
Savvy Shoppers
The sales numbers comes as dealerships are sitting on about 60 to 90 days of inventory on average, providing them with a cushion against the immediate effects of the tariffs. “It has created an urgency to buy it now before there’s a price increase,” Rhett Ricart, a Ohio dealer of Ford, Chevrolet, Hyundai and other brands, told Bloomberg.
The reasons for the increased foot traffic was clear to Chris Hopson, principal analyst at S&P Global Mobility.
“Savvy consumers are likely attempting to get ahead of future uncertainty surrounding auto pricing levels by taking advantage of March deals,” said Hopson in a statement. “Downside risks to the auto demand and production environment abound as consumers face potential higher auto prices as a result of expected tariffs.”
