Manheim-Australian-Market-Report-Q3-2016 | Page 3

Introduction Australian Market Report Q3 Welcome to your edition of the Manheim Q3 Australian Market Report H ello and welcome to the Q3 edition of our Quarterly Australian Market Report. With new car sales up 2.8% year to date, the market is motoring along nicely. We are now into the last quarter of 2016 and it is amazing how quickly this year seems to have gone. While we all keep track of the months and how our respective companies are performing, just how close we are to the end of the year doesn’t quite dawn on us until we notice all the Xmas products creeping onto the super market shelves. With new car sales up 2.8 per cent year to date, the market is motoring along nicely. It looks like another strong result for 2016, with experts predicting sales are still on track to hit the 1.1m figure forecast halfway through the year. While overall sales are up it has been a mixed bag across the different market segments and some brands are doing well while others are finding it a very tough market. As usual we review the market’s performance as part of our Report. We also bring you a mix of news from around the globe and from within Australia. We commence with some international research on the disconnect shoppers are feeling about their online car shopping experience and the reality that awaits them when they visit the showroom. Most automotive research is centred on car buying, so we thought we would take a look at some research into the vehicle service experience, which highlight some interesting customer perspectives. Locally we look at some interesting developments in the sphere of autonomous vehicles. It is a burgeoning field and it seems like every day there is a new development making the news. We highlight the findings of Australian’s attitudes towards autonomous vehicles and look at news out of Bosch about their locally developed self-driving vehicle and what it means for law makers who need to find a way to contend with the impact of these vehicles on our roads. Continuing the theme, we also cover a comprehensive study on autonomous vehicles compiled by Kelley Blue Book, a Cox Automotive company. The report outlines the different level of autonomous vehicles, many of which are on the road in some capacity already and American driver’s thoughts on a variety of issues to do with how comfortable they feel sharing the road with them. We also follow with our regular review of the Manheim used car market and the trends we have identified in our various sale segments. Our report wouldn’t be complete without providing you with some commentary and insight from within our business. This quarter we have a special report on the long term trends affecting sale prices, namely the increase in the average age and the average kilometres of vehicles being sold at Manheim. We round out this issue of our Market Report with some details of how we assisted long term customer, Ford Australia, with the auction of their last saleable vehicles for charity and our first foray into V8 Supercars, sponsoring a DJR Team Penske entry in the recent Gold Coast 600 event. We hope you find this report informative and a valuable addition to the market intelligence you already receive. We welcome any feedback as our aim is to bring you information you find relevant and useful each and every quarter. Please feel free to let us know your thoughts at [email protected]. Mark Hankey Director of Sales, Manheim 3