Certain brands can’t hold off on incentives any longer

New vehicle inventory levels have stabilized following two months of disruption caused by a cyberattack in late June.

Driving the news: Inventory and sales have recovered from a brief period of volatility, according to Cox Automotive, and are now approaching trends similar to what was seen earlier this summer.

• The number of unsold units stood at 2.84 million at the start of September, less than half a percent more than in early June. This suggests supply levels have remained relatively flat, despite wide variances in reporting over the last two months.

• Similarly, days’ supply, at 77 days, fits closely with levels seen earlier this summer. Although the number of days represents a decline over the first half of 2024, it remains much higher than last year.

Zooming in: While inventory levels appear to be normalizing, other trends are emerging that dealers should take into account.

• New model-year vehicles are finally hitting retailer showrooms, representing around a quarter of current inventory levels.

• However, many brands continue to see both a higher number of older models and overall inventory. That’s despite boosting incentives to account for 7.2% of the average transaction price, up from July’s 7% and last September’s 4.8%.

• In fact, most automakers were carrying above-average days’ supply at the start of this month, including Nissan, Hyundai, Ford and Stellantis. Only a handful of manufacturers, such as Toyota, Honda and Subaru, continue to carry minimal inventory, dragging down the national average.

Bottom line: Supply levels are stable but remain higher than many automakers would like. More incentives are likely on the way to boost sales and make room for newer vehicles.

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