1987 Buick Regal Grand National Coupe 2-door 3.8l on 2040-cars

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U.S. new-vehicle sales in 2018 rise slightly to 17.27 million [UPDATE]

DETROIT — Sales of new vehicles in the U.S. rose slightly in 2018, defying predictions and highlighting a strong economy. Automakers reported an increase of 0.3 percent over a year ago to 17.27 million vehicles. The increase came despite rising interest rates, a volatile stock market, and rising car and truck prices that pushed some buyers out of the new-vehicle market. Industry analysts and automakers said strong economic fundamentals pushed up sales and should keep them near historic highs in 2019. "Economic conditions in the U.S. are favorable and should continue to be supportive of vehicle sales at or around their current run rate," Ford Chief Economist Emily Kolinski Morris said after the company and other automakers announced their sales numbers Thursday. That auto sales remain near the 2016 record of 17.55 million is a testimonial to the strength of the economy, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. The job market, he said, has created new employment, and wage growth has accelerated. "That's fundamental to selling anything," he said. "If there are lots of jobs and people are getting bigger paychecks, they will buy more." The unemployment rate is 3.7 percent, a 49-year low. The economy is thought to have grown close to 3 percent last year, its best performance in more than a decade. Consumers, the main driver of the economy, are spending freely. The Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate four times in 2018 but is only expected to raise it twice this year. Auto sales also were helped by low gasoline prices and rising home values, Zandi said. It all means that people are likely to keep buying new vehicles this year even as they grow more expensive. The Edmunds.com auto-pricing site estimates that the average new vehicle price hit a record $35,957 in December, about 2 percent higher than the previous year. It will be harder for automakers to keep the sales pace above 17 million because they have been enticing buyers for several years now with low-interest financing and other incentives, Zandi said. He predicts more deals in the coming year as job growth slows and credit tightens for higher-risk buyers. Edmunds, which provides content, including automotive tips and reviews, for distribution by The Associated Press, predicts that sales will drop this year to 16.9 million.

Ford Bronco, Bronco Sport, sub-Ranger pickup and GM EVs | Autoblog Podcast #618

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder and Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. Top of the list this week are the leaked photos of the 2021 Ford Bronco and Bronco Sport. Then they talk about the possibility of a small Ford pickup based on the Focus, as well as all the electric vehicles Snyder saw in person at GM's "EV Day." The editors have been driving the Ram Power Wagon and Hyundai Sonata, and Palmer took Autoblog's long-term Subaru Forester to New Orleans. Finally, they help a listener choose a small luxury crossover in this week's "Spend My Money" segment. then, just as they're about to wrap up the show, they learn that the 2020 New York Auto Show has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. Good times. Autoblog Podcast #618 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown 2021 Ford Bronco and Bronco Sport leaked photos (and, just as we predicted, more photos) Ford shows its dealers the sub-Ranger pickup More details about everything we saw at GM's "EV Day" Driving the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon Driving the 2020 Hyundai Sonata Driving our long-term 2019 Subaru Outback to New Orleans Spend My Money: Audi Q3, Volvo XC40 or Range Rover Evoque? 2020 New York International Auto Show postponed Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:

NFL QB Cam Newton and supermodel Miranda Kerr star in Buick's Super Bowl ad

Buick's Super Bowl LI ad is another demonstration that its cars aren't frumpy anymore. The ad opens with parents watching their children play football, with one of the dads, we'll call him "Dad No. 1," shouting encouraging words to his son. In the background, a bright red Buick Cascada pulls up, and another dad, "Dad No. 2," points it out. Dad 1 doesn't believe him, and says, "If that's a Buick, then my kid's Cam Newton." All of sudden, his son transmogrifies into Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. As expected, he quickly dominates the game, with some amusing results. At the end, when a Buick Encore shows up, the referee inadvertently turns himself into supermodel Miranda Kerr, based on apparent disbelief over what constitutes a Buick. You can see all of the shenanigans in the video above. Plus, if you'd like to see what goes into making a Super Bowl commercial, Buick produced a short video with Newton and Kerr showing what happens behind the scenes. You can check it out below. Related Video: