Trends in the used truck auction and retail channels diverged last month, J.D. Power announced Monday in its July Commercial Truck Guidelines report.
In the auction market, inventories and sales volumes were on the rise, putting downward pressure on pricing. Retail volumes, however, slipped, and pricing ticked slightly upward. J.D. Power adds the former is historically common.
Looking at late-model sleeper tractors, average pricing in the company’s benchmark truck in June was:
- Model year (MY) 2023: $64,992; $5,800 (8.2%) lower than May
- MY 2022: $53,959; $5,685 (9.5%) lower than May
- MY 2021: $35,504; $7,495 (17.4%) lower than May
- MY 2020: $31,520; $3,056 (8.8%) lower than May
- MY 2019: $22,588; $2,812 (11.1%) lower than May
At auctions in June, selling prices for the 4- to-6-year-old cohort of J.D. Power’s benchmark truck averaged 11.8% lower than May, but (coincidentally) 11.8% higher than June 2024. Pricing for that group is currently 8.2% higher than the strong pre-pandemic period of 2018 in nominal figures (15.2% lower if adjusted for inflation), and 73.1% higher than the last market nadir in late 2019 (38.5% higher when adjusted for inflation).
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J.D. Power also notes last month it hadn’t yet seen the expected volume of 3-year-old trucks moving through auctions. That volume finally appeared in June’s results, with the highest volume of trucks of that age sold since September 2023.
“Fleet trades and downsizing appear to be a primary factor in this volume increase,” the company states.
In the retail space, volume was down slightly and pricing up a smidge.
Looking at the overall mix of trucks retailed in June, the company’s dataset of sold sleeper tractors averaged 52 months old and 420,354 miles. Compared with May, this group was three months newer and had 18,219 (4.2%) fewer miles. Compared with June 2024, this dataset averaged 16 months newer and 28,420 (6.3%) fewer miles.
“June was the first month in which we saw a notable volume of model-year 2025 trucks sold, which helped push the average age of our dataset lower. In general, older sleepers have increasingly been auctioned or wholesaled, suggesting that already-limited niche is contracting even more,” the company reports.
J.D. Power adds June’s average pricing for late-model trucks was as follows:
- MY 2024: $130,707; $2,010 (1.5%) lower than May
- MY 2023: $102,778; $1,082 (1.1%) higher than May
- MY 2022: $77,812; $1,612 (2.1%) higher than May
- MY 2021: $59,750; $2,520 (4.4%) higher than May
- MY 2020: $43,950; $393 (0.9%) higher than May
The company states 3- to 5-year-old sleeper tractors brought 0.9% more than May and 28.1% more than June 2024. Year-over-year comparisons have been positive since December 2024, and month-over-month comparisons have been positive since January 2025. Late-model sleepers are now bringing 22.9% more money than the last strong pre-pandemic period of early 2019 in nominal dollars, or 4.1% less when adjusted for inflation. Compared with the last weak pre-pandemic period of late 2019, J.D. Power states late-model sleeper values are running 59.4% higher in nominal dollars or 27.0% higher in real dollars.
Additionally, the company adds depreciation in 2025 to date is essentially flat.
As for retail sales per dealership, J.D. Power data shows volume pulled back in June, which is typical for the month. Dealers reported an average of 2.5 trucks sold per rooftop, down from 3.2 in May. The total number of retail sales reported in June was 2.8% higher than May, and 55.0% higher than June 2024, the company states.
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In its overall evaluation of the market, J.D. Power states the number of 3- to 5-year-old sleepers sold at auction and retail channels is increasing. Which is typical.
“Fleets and other new-truck customers are still following a conservative purchasing strategy, as order and delivery figures show. However, these end users still need to replace aged and high-mileage iron, which is why we’re seeing some degree of late-model trade activity,” the company states.
“Traditional cyclicality has been muted post-pandemic, at least in terms of deliveries, but there is more upward pressure than downward on the new truck market. In addition to replacement activity, some customers will still want to time their deliveries to avoid 2027 price increases.
For more information, and to read the entirety of this month’s report, please CLICK HERE.
