The dealership’s low pricing and selection of high-end, low-mileage used cars helped drive sales, Reffitt said. In 2015, Mid-Towne Auto sold 250 more cars than it did the year before when almost 410 cars were sold, he said.
“Every month when I look at the numbers, I’m amazed,” Reffitt said. “We’ve done really well and are very blessed to say the least.”
Auto sales were huge across the nation. Fueled by low gas prices and interest rates, U.S. auto sales were expected to reach a record high of 17.5 million cars and trucks in 2015, edging past the old record of 17.35 million set in 2000, reports said Tuesday, when automakers revealed December and full-year sales.
Brenda Pierson, general manager of I-75 Pierson Automotive in Middletown, said her dealership sales in 2015 were up 10 percent. And Roosevelt Robinson, of Middletown Ford, said they also enjoyed a strong year amid the bustle of a major renovation at the dealership.
“It’s been a good year for us,” Robinson said. “Construction was a challenge, and we’re looking forward to the new year.”
Robinson said 2015 was a rising tide for the auto industry, which is “just making up for those down years in the economy.”
Ed Larkin, president of Rose Automotive in Hamilton, said sales at his independent pre-owned vehicle dealership were mostly flat in 2015. But fourth quarter sales at the dealer group’s new Preble County location, Larkin Cobb Chevrolet Buick GMC, acquired in September, were up 20 percent, he said. The dealership ended the year on a strong note with sales being up 25 percent in December.
“There is still pent up demand for new vehicles,” Larkin said of the factors contributing to increased sales. “We are still coming out of the economic downturn, but there is some optimism in the economy. It’s easier for people to get bigger loans on new vehicles than it has been in the past.”
Reffitt believes customers are more comfortable financially buying a new vehicle. He said they are also much more well informed, which makes them feel better about “pulling the trigger” on a major purchase.
“Instead of driving around all day to different lots, people are doing a lot of research online before coming in,” Reffitt said. “They are seeing what’s out there and who has the best pricing. There are so many more websites and so much more information out there than five, six, seven years ago.”
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