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Average transaction prices climb to a record $36,270 in January

The automotive sector made a hash of the numbers last month, a mess of pluses and minuses clogging the transaction-price charts according to Kelley Blue Book. The overall industry rose one percent, even though buyers bought fewer cars and light vehicles in January 2018 vs 2017 using the selling-day adjusted rate. Due to January transaction prices rising to $36,270, a record for January, the value of new vehicles sold climbed more than $1 billion compared to January 2017. KBB's transaction prices don't include customer incentives, which changes the complexion slightly; average incentive spending rose to just over ten percent. The average transaction price in December 2017 was $36,756, so January dropped a bit - nothing unexpected, with the month annually blamed for "January doldrums." More revealing is the fact that the average transaction price in January 2017 was $34,910. This year's plumped-up figure came courtesy of the continued shift to crossovers, SUVs, and light trucks, which shouldn't surprise anyone who's read an automotive blog in the past 20 years. That category comprised nearly 70 percent of new vehicle sales for the month. Some manufacturers profited more than others, though. Fiat Chrysler managed 12.8 percent fewer sales in January compared year-on-year, but the company's vehicles sold for $1,300 more. The Ford brand suffered a 6.3-percent dip in sales, but brand transaction prices increased $2,000, while a Lincoln sold for $8,700 more on average. General Motors sold more cars and sold them for more money; overall GM transaction prices rose four percent, or $1,270, while a GMC traded hands for seven-percent more than in January 2017 and a Cadillac got $2,300 more on average. Of KBB's listed automakers, the Volkswagen Group got the most of out its customers, transaction prices rising at the German automaker by 5.6 percent to $42,243 in January 2018 compared to a year earlier. American Honda followed with a 4.3-percent increase to $28,991, GM in third at 4.1 percent to $40,313. Find your next car at Autoblog using our new and used car listings or the Car Finder tool. Broken out by segment, minivans rocked the table, transaction prices leaping by 7.9 percent to $35,380 compared to January a year earlier. Luxury cars boasted the next-highest rise, at 3.6 percent to $58,533.

Canada expands cooperation with EPA over VW scandal

It doesn't take much more than a stiff breeze to send some US pollution northward across the 49th parallel. Perhaps that's why the Canadian government says it is standing strong with the US in its continuing investigation of Volkswagen and the allegations and self-reporting that the automaker installed software to try to game emissions regulations. In fact, the Canadian government is going to do its own slate of on-road testing to see how VW diesel engines perform in real-world conditions. Last year, about 1.8 million new light-duty vehicles were sold in Canada, which is about equal to how many were sold in Maryland. That compares to about 17 million new-vehicle sales for the US. But every bit counts when it comes to an increase in potentially harmful emissions, and the Canadian government says it wants to make sure VW's diesel engines are being properly monitored, whether they're sold in Detroit, MI, or across the river in Windsor, Ontario. And that means following up – together – on allegations that Europe's biggest automaker is using so-called "defeat devices" in what it has long called its "clean diesel" engines. The automotive industry continues to be roiled by the VW scandal, in which the automaker said that as many as 11 million of its vehicles may contain software programmed to manipulate emissions-testing procedures. Volkswagen has set aside $7.3 billion to deal with the scandal, while VW CEO Martin Winterkorn was forced to step down after the issue became public. Take a look at Environment Canada's press release below. Statement - Government of Canada expands its on-going collaborative work with the U.S. EPA to assess other diesel vehicles for defeat devices OTTAWA, Sept. 26, 2015 /CNW/ - On September 22, 2015, the Government of Canada opened an investigation into Volkswagen's alleged use of defeat devices to circumvent emissions regulations. Environment Canada issued the following update on the issue: "The Government of Canada has a long history of collaborating closely with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to align emission standards, as well as to provide oversight and verify compliance with applicable emission regulations "Today, the Government of Canada is announcing that it has expanded its ongoing collaborative work with the U.S. EPA to assess other diesel vehicles for defeat devices and compliance issues. "Vehicles will be subject to a variety of tests including on-road testing using portable emission measurement systems.

1 in 7 Americans say they might buy an EV next, as sales of electrics surge

About one in seven driving Americans may likely purchase an electric vehicle as their next car, according to an AAA poll, meaning that as many as 30 million Americans may pony up for an EV within the next three to five years. While some of the motivation is environmental, survey recipients say that lower maintenance expenses and solo access to high-occupancy-vehicle lanes are also among the factors behind potentially going electric. Take a look at the AAA press release on the study here. The poll indicates that about as many people are planning to buy an EV for their next car as are looking to buy a pickup, which is impressive given that the best-selling US vehicle is the Ford F-150. And things should only improve, as about 20 percent of millennials polled said that their next car would probably be an EV. The results are all the more encouraging, at least among green-car advocates, because gas prices have fallen about 40 percent within the past five years, meaning that there's less of an incentive to go electric from a purely economic perspective. Through the first quarter of this year, US plug-in vehicle sales were up about 63 percent from a year earlier to about 39,000 vehicles. Meanwhile, when it came to AAA's annual green-vehicle awards for this year, Tesla's Model S and Model X took the large car and SUV categories, respectively, while the Chevrolet Bolt and Volkswagen e-Golf were listed atop the subcompact and compact lists. The Lexus GS 450h hybrid and the Ford F-150 took home AAA's best green vehicle in the midsize and pickup truck categories. Related Video: