C.O. car, RV dealers benefit from low gas prices

Gas prices are the lowest they’ve been in seven years, with average retail prices in Oregon falling 8 1/2 cents in the past week. Nationally, prices have fallen 6 1/2 cents. With all these gas savings, sales of large vehicles have gone up significantly, and it seems there’s no end in sight.

“What we’ve seen, we’ve seen a shift from away from the more fuel economy vehicles to the larger vehicles both in the SUV’s and trucks,” Jeff Robberson, owner of Robberson Ford in Bend, said Monday.

The price of gas is ever-changing. But despite the volatility, many people are choosing to splurge on the big rig of their dreams.

“You know, it all depends on if the person is a short-term or long-term looking person,” Robberson said. “But I think that we are going to see still a growth in sales in the kind of vehicles people want to buy, more typically, than what they feel they have to buy.”

The growth in sales has already been attributed to the lower fuel prices.

“So you saw kind of what we lost in car (sales), we gained in truck, and I attribute that primarily to the price of fuel,” Robberson said.

The gas-fueled sales bump also has helped the RV industry.

“We’re expecting this lower end product to do quite a bit better this year, with the gas prices the way they are,” said Ty Kelly, owner of Beaver Coach RVs in Bend.

With this surge in sales, it’s fair to say the low gas prices are a boost for the economy.