The average price of a used vehicle for model-years 2011 to 2015 depreciated by 0.8% in February, while trucks saw 0.7% depreciation, according to Black Book data.

Small pickups performed the best in February, according to Black Book, increasing their value by 0.2%. Vehicles in the small pickups segment include the Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Colorado, Nissan Frontier, and Honda Ridgeline.

"The demand for small pickups continued to see extended strength this past month, a trend that began a few years ago when the economy regained strength with a lot of construction activity," said Anil Goyal, senior vice president of automotive valuation and analytics at Black Book. "This segment has continued to remain strong due to increasing demand, lower used supply, and very few competitive models. We expect this strength on small pickups to continue in 2017 due to lower forecasted used supply."

Vehicles in this category finished the last month with an average segment price of $19,138. The small pickup segment also managed to retain its value compared to year-ago levels, only depreciating 7.1% from 2016’s value of $20,597.

In addition, a steady supply of box trucks is helping to keep downward pressure on the medium-duty market. That being said, the right spec’ed unit will always bring a premium, according to Black Book. Wrecker, dump, reefer, and other vocational bodies are in demand and bringing strong money at auctions all across the country.

As spring nears, Black Book expects to see continued depreciation in these segments as more and more trucks become available in the near future. Recent reports show orders for Class 3 to 7 trucks are down, which may result in a shortage of used trucks down the road. This may help improve and stabilize the medium duty market. 

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Lauren Fletcher

Lauren Fletcher

Executive Editor - Fleet, Trucking & Transportation

Lauren Fletcher is Executive Editor for the Fleet, Trucking & Transportation Group. She has covered the truck fleet industry since 2006. Her bright personality helps lead the team's content strategy and focuses on growth, education, and motivation.

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