U.S.News & World Report
Cars Hurt Most by $4 Gas
Tuesday June 10, 1:26 pm ET
By Rick Newman
Call it the revenge of the little guys. With gas prices officially cresting $4--and running higher in many parts of the country--American drivers are finally downsizing in big numbers. Overall auto sales are down about 8 percent so far this year--but sales of large cars and trucks have plunged 23 percent, according to J.D. Power & Associates. There's no mystery behind the shift: Buyers clearly believe high gas prices are here to stay, and are desperate to cut their gas bills.
Among the cars piling up on dealer lots, here are some of the biggest losers:
Hummer. Sierra Clubers can go ahead and cheer: Hummer sales are down by 36 percent so far this year, the biggest drop among a single brand. Sales of the smallest Hummer--the H3, which averages about 15 mpg--have fallen even more than the brawnier H2, which gets a meager 10 mpg or so. Consider some painful Hummer math: With gas at $4, it costs about $120 to fill the tank of an H2, and then you can only go about 300 miles before forking over another $120. No wonder General Motors is considering offloading the whole division.
whole artilce here:
http://biz.yahoo.com/usnews/080610/1...pf=family-home