SANTA MONICA, Calif. – As another year draws to a close, Edmunds.com takes a look back at what it considers the key auto industry trends for 2010.

Trucks and midsize cars sold better than compacts and hybrids
While new car sales are trending upward — with expected 2010 sales of roughly 1.1 million — some segments are doing better than others. Stable gas prices mean that consumers – and especially those who had been putting off their vehicle purchases during the recession – have been more willing to buy trucks and SUVs. As a result, truck sales are expected to be up 14.9 percent and SUV sales are up 21.3 percent over last year. Midsize car sales are expected to be up 7.8 percent over last year. Hybrid sales are down 8.1 percent and compact car sales are up just 1.1 percent.

“Many of the new trucks and SUVs were bought to be used as work vehicles by contractors and others who had delayed their purchases waiting for the economy to improve. The midsize car segment also was a big winner this year since it had impressive new products and captured the relatively conservative mood of car-buyers,” stated Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Michelle Krebs. “Hybrids and compact cars, on the other hand, weren’t such strong sellers. There weren’t many new players in the compact car segment to draw in attention and, because of the economy, many traditional compact car buyers likely bought used cars if they bought anything at all.”

Most automakers reduced incentives, except for Japanese brands
Edmunds.com True Cost of Incentives (TCI) data showed that incentives fell for domestic, European and Korean brands compared to 2009, but Japanese automakers increased their incentives this year. While Japanese brands remained the lowest in average incentive spending with $1,968 per car sold this year, it was still a notable increase from the $1,637 spent per car last year. U.S. makes averaged $3,333 in incentives per car sold versus $3,766 in 2009, while Korean brands averaged $1,820, down from $2,721 last year. The European makes had the greatest decline in incentives, averaging $2,491 in spending per car, down from $3,295 in 2009.

Used car prices up thanks to high demand caused by "substitution effect"
The average used car transaction price is at $19,345 currently, versus $16,586 in December 2009. All year long used cars were generally 10 to 15 percent higher than last year. Due to the economic downturn, car shoppers that had traditionally been new car buyers ultimately bought used.

"Consumers have been willing to either substitute premium for non-premium cars or consider used and certified pre-owned cars instead of new," said Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Karl Brauer. “Ironically, thanks to reduced supply and increased demand, today many lightly used pre-owned cars are actually more expensive than new cars. But, because that is counter-intuitive, many used car shoppers aren’t even considering a new car.” The supply of used cars is limited, though, so Edmunds.com analysts expect 2010 used car sales to be up by 3.7 percent compared to last year – while new car sales are up 11.6 percent.

Recalled vehicles and complaints up, while campaigns are down
According to Edmunds.com’s analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, safety recalls affected 19.1 million vehicles in 2010, up dramatically from the 13.4 million vehicle annual average from 2005-2009. Nearly 41,000 complaints have been registered for model years 2005 through 2010 in the NHTSA database so far this year — more than more twice that in 2009.

“Looking at the year-over-year trends, typically the number of complaints goes up between 3,000 and 5,000 annually as more people discover the online complaints submission process. However, the Toyota recalls cast a much brighter spotlight on this process. It will be interesting to see if the trend continues into the future when recalls aren’t earning front page headlines,” commented Analyst Panee Segal. Despite all the attention to recalls this year, the number of NHTSA recall campaigns declined to 165 in 2010, compared to 175 in 2009.

Drivers benefited from more in-car technology
Technology continues to get more deeply imbedded in our cars and, for the most part, helps make cars safer, more efficient and more convenient. Among the Top 10 Car Technologies for 2010 that Edmunds.com identified were:

• Volvo’s Pedestrian Detection with Full Auto Brake, which uses radar and a camera to identify pedestrians in front of the car and automatically bring it to a halt

• Infiniti Eco Pedal, an accelerator pedal that pushes back to let drivers know they are wasting fuel

• GM’s OnStar MyLink app, which allows drivers using smartphones to locate their car in a crowded parking lot and lock or unlock the doors, and has a variety of other convenience features.

Click here for more information on the Top 10 Car Technologies for 2010 from Edmunds.