The vehicle inventory shortage in Canada has largely improved, but there is more to the story than meets the eye: it appears new vehicle dealer inventory includes plenty of zero-emission options and not enough internal combustion engine units.
That is according to the latest update from DesRosiers Automotive Consultants (DAC), which reached out to colleagues at the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association for more information. Among the many questions they asked, DAC discussed current inventory levels and opinions regarding both ZEV and ICE vehicles.
DAC discovered that, “whilst dealer inventory is by no means a prerequisite for sales success, dealer opinion regarding ZEVs and ICE stock levels is certainly interesting,” said Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC, in a statement.
On the topic of ICE vehicles, 43.1% of dealers said they still do not have enough inventory. Another group of 32.6% noted that they had the right amount of inventory, and the smallest group, 24.3%, stated they had too much ICE inventory.
For ZEVs a similar group at 31.4% of dealers stated that they have sufficient inventory, while the largest group, at 44.4%, said they had too much ZEV inventory. Another 24.3% noted they did not have enough ZEVs.
“Consumers are increasingly pushing back against higher priced vehicles and as the ZEV focus shifts from eager early adopters to a more hesitant general market, the path forward will be challenging,” said King in a statement.
Overall, DAC said the path to pre-pandemic inventory may not be the road taken as OEMs have indicated a preference for lower inventory levels compared to that period.
