Based on surveys of the major motorcoach manufacturers that sell vehicles in the United States and Canada, motorcoach sales from the participating manufacturers saw a massive year-over-year decline, according to the American Bus Association Foundation’s third-quarter 2020 Motorcoach Builder Survey.
Compared to the third-quarter 2019 (Q319), the motorcoach sales in the third quarter of 2020 (Q320) fell nearly 50%. New vehicle sales in the over 45-foot vehicles fell 63.2% from 495 in Q319 to 182 in Q320. Sales of vehicles between 30 and 40 feet fell by 96.2% down from 52 to 2.
The only sector that saw moderate growth was the 40- to 45-foot vehicle group, which grew from 14 to 16 in Q320. The used vehicle market fell 11.3% percent, from 221 vehicles in 2019 to 196 in the same quarter in 2020.
Motorcoach manufacturers
This is the second quarter in a row of dramatic decline. In the previous quarter, the survey reported an overall 83% decrease in sales year over year. Sales for Q220 fell from 766 units in 2019 to 129 units (59 new coaches and 70 pre-owned coaches) in 2020.
All aspects of the motorcoach industry have been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the manufacturing sector, according to Peter Pantuso, President of the ABA Foundation.
“Industry owners are barely making ends meet as travel has come to a standstill in the United States. It is predicted that, if the industry does not see some sort of relief from the government by the end of the year, between 40% and 50% of the industry will be out of business,” Pantuso said. “This will flood the market with vehicles. It may take years for the entire industry to return back to 2019 levels.”
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