Gas up, Sport Utility Vehicle Sales Down

It is the end of an icon. The Sport Utility Vehicle, often decried as the symbol of America's conspicuous consumption, is about to bite the dust.

There is no love lost between the SUV and me. For too long I have been in my unpretentious Honda, peeking around their hulking spines, trying in vain to see oncoming traffic or vacating a lane on the highway to let one of their tailgating minions pass.

I won't miss the giant when it is gone.

GM admits that the Hummer sport utility vehicle line is under "strategic review." The only thing humming on the Hummer is the whir of the gas gauge as it resets to E.

Record high gas prices are being blamed for poor SUV sales this year. General Motors sales dropped 16 % in the first half of this year as $4.00 per gallon gas prices eroded demand for the biggest Chevy and GMC pick-ups and SUV's. The carmaker's shares fell to a 54 year low last week.

GM is not alone, Toyota saw June sales fall 21.4%, Ford dropped 27.9%.

With desperation seeping in, some U.S. automakers have begun relying on gimmicks to boost sales.

Chrysler is offering customers $2.99 per gallon gas through July 31, with the car company paying the difference between $2.99 and the pump price for 12,000 miles a year under the offer. But that won't last forever.

The car makers claim that they never saw it coming. Having watched the rise and fall of American automakers over the years, I don't believe that for a moment. American business never seems to accurately forecast future trends, and as mistakes go, this one is a whopper.

But does the industry pull itself up by its bootstraps and vow to produce cars with better gas mileage than National Highway Traffic Safety Administration standards dictate? Hell no. The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers lodged a 77 page protest about the cost to comply with the new mileage standards for the year 2020, a measly 35 miles per gallon.

Ford is increasing production on the Focus compact, but still could not meet demand in June. Both GM and Ford have announced plans for new subcompacts, but it will take at least two years to gear up factories for the new products.

Even Toyota Motor Corp., which is generally seen as more nimble and innovative, didn't have enough of its fuel-efficient Prius, Corolla or Yaris cars at dealerships to keep up with demand last month.

Given the U.S. auto industry's current can't-do attitude it is with measured glee that I celebrate the demise of the SUV. I would hate to be mistaken for an eco-dogmatist. And the blow to the U.S. auto industry is not lost on me, as I wait month by month for Toyota sales to eclipse the once venerable General Motors.

Jane Norris is a former fed and current host of the Federal Drive. You can reach her at jnorris@federalnewsradio.com