November Used Class 8 Sales Rise 2% Year-Over-Year

The average retail age for Class 8 trucks sold in November was 77 months, up from 76 months in October but down from 82 months in November 2022. (ViewApart/Getty Images)

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Used Class 8 truck sales rose just shy of 2% year-over-year in November to 20,500 units from 20,100 vehicles, ACT Research reported.

Sales fell 4.65% compared with October’s 21,500 vehicles, ACT said. October sales rose 4.9% month-to-month from 20,500 units in September.

The average retail sale price for Class 8 trucks sold in November was $59,292, down 6.2% from $63,182 in October and down 27.4% from $81,657 in the same month in 2022. It was the first month with a sub-$60,000 price since April 2021.

“Less-than-expected declines [for prices] in August, September and October may have been an early Christmas present,” ACT Vice President Steve Tam said. “Our expectations are unchanged, with lower prices through the end of 2023 and a return to [month-on-month] growth toward the end of 2024.”

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 Tam

The average retail mileage for Class 8 trucks sold in November was 417,000, up marginally from 415,000 in October but down 5.2% from 440,000 in November 2022, according to ACT.

“Late-model trucks with average or lower mileage for their age have lost less than 4% of their value each month in the fourth quarter, and trucks with higher mileage have probably seen the worst of their devaluation,” Chris Visser, senior analyst and product manager for J.D. Power, wrote in a commentary Dec. 20.

Used truck pricing still is about 20% higher than the lowest month of 2019, which was the weakest point pre-pandemic, said Visser, the architect of J.D. Power’s commercial vehicle valuation and market intelligence processes.

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Visser 

“Four- to 6-year-old trucks brought 3.9% less money than in October, and 40.2% less money than November 2022,” Visser noted. “Values for the newest model years available in the marketplace remain just under the strong pre-pandemic period of 2018 in nominal figures, or just more than 20% less if adjusted for inflation.”

The average retail age for Class 8 trucks sold in November was 77 months, up from 76 months in October but down from 82 months in November 2022, according to ACT.

Depreciation slowed as 2023 came to an end, Visser said, noting that the freight market is showing signs of a bottom, partially due to seasonality, but also partially due to leaner business/industry inventories.

November saw a 1.53% month-over-month decrease in used heavy-duty truck inventories, although availability remained significantly higher year-over-year at 41.22%, according to Sandhills Global.

Sandhills Global operates a portfolio of used truck, agricultural machinery and construction equipment sales portals comprising truckpaper.com, auctiontime.com, machinerytrader.com and tractorhouse.com.

Demand, however, has been soft due to the ongoing turbulence in the freight sector, with reduced activity expected to continue into this year, Sandhills Global said.

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Lubischer 

“The market outlook for heavy-duty trucks and trailers is still weak, and that isn’t likely to change over the next few months,” Truck Paper Sales Manager Scott Lubischer said.

At the start of December, Lubischer said a solution for dealers wanting to maximize returns immediately was to take advantage of year-end auctions. December auctions tend to be the largest of the year, with demand high, he added.

However, interest in those auctions could have been tempered this past December by the upcoming sale of Yellow Corp.’s rolling stock.

Auction values decreased 1.77% month-over-month and 28.89% year-on-year in November, Sandhills Global said.

Excess truck inventory will continue to filter through auction, wholesale and retail channels through the first half of 2024, Visser said, but the post-pandemic correction looks to be maturing.

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