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Community Corner

Dispatches: Does New Economy Help Used Cars?

In Grafton, it all depends who you ask.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more car dealerships are looking to sell used vehicles as profit margins on new cars shrink. But if you ask three used car sellers in Grafton if the weakened economy has been good or bad for business, you’ll get three different answers.

For Mike Noel, owner of , this has been one of the better periods in his 20-plus years of selling cars.

“It’s been very good,” he said, noting that cars in the $8,000-to-$12,000 range are selling especially well. “A lot of people are not going for the big car payment, and they are buying used for right now with the way the economy is.”

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Surprisingly, not every used car buyer is looking for the best gas mileage, according to Noel. They also seek a vehicle that can handle all types of New England weather.

“People want something that’s good for the snow but they can still fit their family in it,” he said. “They’re not going for the big Suburban, but they are going for the V6 engine.”

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But at , where used cars make up a small part of sales, manager Mike Awde said he’s probably sold fewer used cars this year than last year.

“The problem we’re seeing is that people are keeping their cars longer,” Awde said, adding that customers with less money are just making the minimum amount of repairs to keep their car running.

Everyone’s looking for something smaller with better gas mileage and most importantly, the best deal, Awde said.

“Sometimes even being fair is not good enough, you have to cut your prices,” he said.

And if you ask Richard MacKoul of , he’d tell you that you just can’t predict how the economy is going to affect business.

“We’ve been staying pretty steady,” he said. “Cars are bringing all the money at the auctions even though the economy is supposedly in the toilet.”

Like Noel, MacKoul said saving money on gas isn’t necessarily a top priority for his customers.

“Pickup trucks get no gas mileage. They should’ve gone down 20 percent but they haven’t, they’ve gone up if anything,” he said.

Sometimes, MacKoul said, selling used cars is just about luck.

“After 25 years you’d think I’d have it figured out but I really don’t,” he said. “It keeps changing.”

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