General Motors Corp. said Thursday it was halting development of its next-generation pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles amid soaring gasoline prices.

“We are delaying indefinitely work on the next generation of pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles (SUVs) until we have a better idea of where the market is going to be,” said Tom Wilkinson, a GM spokesman.

Sales of fuel-hungry trucks and SUVs have plunged in the United States recently in the face of record-high gasoline prices that have shot up about 25 percent in the past year.

GM’s new trucks had not been due to reach the market until 2011 and 2012, according to plans GM released last year during its contract negotiations with the United Auto Workers.

“We think there will still be a market for full-sized pickup trucks in the future but it will be focused primarily on people who need their trucks for work. It won’t be like 2002 or 2003,” Wilkinson said.

“We’re going to keep working on improvements to the current trucks,” he added.

Earlier this month, GM chairman and chief executive Richard Wagoner announced GM planned to close over the next two years four assembly plants — one in Canada, one in Mexico and two in the United States — that currently build pickup trucks and SUVs.

At the same time, GM also announced it was reviewing the future of the SUV-based Hummer brand.

No decision has been made on Hummer’s fate, though Mark LaNeve, GM’s vice president of vehicle sales, service and marketing, recently told AFP that GM would like to make a “quick” decision about the Hummer’s future.

Selling the brand to another company or an investment group is one possibility, he said.

Nick Erondy isn’t taking SUVs or pickups as trade-ins anymore.

The deal-breaker came in April when gas prices hit $3.50 a gallon. That’s when large-vehicle purchases at Crown Motors in Schenectady came to a standstill.

Customers want cars with better fuel efficiency. But Erondy, a used car dealer, can’t afford to take on any more gas-guzzlers.

“I have to just tell them ‘no,’” he says. “I’d have to be stupid to sell them a nice little car and accept something I’m going to keep until Christmas.”

Erondy isn’t alone. As people adjust their driving habits to cut fuel costs, oversized vehicles are overtaking car lots.

Mangino Auto Group discourages pickups or SUVs for trade at its Pontiac-Buick dealership in Ballston Spa. Oddly, truck sales at the family’s Chevrolet store in Amsterdam are faring better than expected in a fuel-conscious economy.

“It’s a crazy time right now,” said Ralph Mangino Jr., sales manager at Mangino Pontiac-Buick. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Truck sales began falling months ago with the slowing in residential construction. Nationally, the sale of used SUVs plunged 14 percent in April, according to the most recent data available through CNW Marketing Research. That number compares with an 8 percent drop for the same month last year. Truck sales dropped 8 percent in the same period.

Trade-in values for both SUVs and large pickups have also plummeted.

Mangino advises shoppers to consider the equity in their vehicles and weigh it against the trade-in and potential gas savings before deciding to downsize.

“If we do take the trade-in, the amount is so far behind book [value] or average wholesale, that it’s almost not worth it for someone,” Mangino said.

SUVs became popular in the late 1990s when gas was cheap, the economy was solid and the housing market was booming. Consumers began moving away from them a few years ago as baby boomers aged and consumers turned to more fuel-efficient crossover vehicles. Gas prices accelerated the trend.

People who owned pickup trucks because they need them occasionally are also rethinking their priorities.

“Guys who are buying trucks now are buying them because they need them to do their work,” Mangino said.

According to the U.S. Labor Department’s May Consumer Price Index, gasoline prices rose 5.2 percent, up 21 percent compared with a year ago.

Earlier this month, General Motors closed four Pickup truck and SUV factories. The company also is considering selling its Hummer brand.

The shift to smaller vehicles indicates people anticipate higher fuel prices, said Donald Metzner, president of Armory Chrysler Jeep in Albany.

Consequently, the value of larger vehicles has declined as gas prices rise.

“In the last couple of months, they’ve dropped faster than they can publish the [automotive pricing] books,” said Metzner, whose dealership had $80 million in sales in 2007, according to the latest Business Review list of automotive dealerships.

Armory still takes trucks and SUVs as trade-ins; the question is whether customers will take the trade-in values they’re offered.

Generally, a 3-year-old pickup today is worth $2,000 to $3,000 less than it was a year ago, according to AutoNation Inc., the country’s largest new-car retailer.

One of Metzner’s customers weighed the reduced trade-in value against the fuel savings of a smaller vehicle. He decided to cut his losses, taking the lower trade in exchange for substantial gas savings.

The customer had been driving a 2006 full-sized Ford F-250 pickup that was getting 12 miles a gallon. He bought a 2008 Jeep Patriot, a small SUV that can average 26 miles per gallon. He calculated he’d save a $100 a week in gas, which covered his monthly car payment.

“Trade-ins don’t make sense in some cases. In this case, it did,” Metzner said.

It’s even more difficult to recover fair value on SUVs, as people tend to buy them for status rather than necessity. With gas prices soaring, the market is softening and buyers are turning to fuel-efficient hybrids and crossovers.

According to Kelley Blue Book, which provides universal vehicle pricing, SUVs depreciated between $3,000 and $5,000, or 6 to 8 percent, in the last six months. Such a depreciation is usually seen over 12 to 18 months, the company reported.

Owners of large SUVs and four-wheel-drive SUVs may want to hold on to them, experts caution, as depreciation is expected to slow. They also expect an uptick in buyer interest in them as winter approaches.

“Hanging on to your current vehicle and riding out the current gas prices could be the most economical answer,” said Jack J. Nerad, a market analyst with Kelley Blue Book.

SUV owners should do the math before determining whether to sell or not, Nerad said. They could owe more on their loans than the vehicle is worth, and that difference should be balanced against the new loan payment, acquisition and insurance costs for the new vehicle, and potential monthly gas savings.

The glut of SUVs puts one consumer market in the driver’s seat.

“For people who still need the function of an SUV, it’s a great time to buy,” said William Lia Jr., a partner with Lia Auto Group, the area’s largest car dealer.

Lia Auto still takes trucks and SUVs on trade, Lia said, “provided we can make the economics work.” The company sells Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Nissan, Toyota and Infiniti from locations in Albany, Latham and Schenectady, and had $302 million in sales in 2007, according to The Business Review list.

Many large SUVs are being shipped overseas, where they are recognized as a novelty.

“Foreign dealers have been very responsive to what’s going on here,” Lia said.

Today, there are very few outlets in this country for larger vehicles. Pickup trucks and SUVs were hot commodities at U.S. auto auctions, but gas prices turned the tides.

“Those guys don’t even want them,” Mangino of Mangino Pontiac said. “That never, ever happened before. Truck after truck after truck can go through, and nobody’s even raising a hand to bid on them.”

Flatbed trailers are used to carry large, heavy loads that need to be loaded and unloaded quickly, as well as those loads that are oddly shaped. You should keep in mind that not all flatbeds are alike. There are different designs that are better for different types of cargo. They may also vary significantly from manufacturer to manufacturer. If you are unsure of the design that you need, then it is best to check with the manufacturer to ensure that you are choosing the right one for your needs. You should be able to find information about manufacturers by doing a quick search online.

Flatbed trailers are typically long trailers with only a floor. They have no sides and no roof to hold cargo. This is why they are perfectly suited for larger or bulkier cargo. These trailers are most commonly used to transport cargo that is weatherproof. For instance, if you are transporting heavy machinery or construction material, then a flatbed would be perfect. If however, you are transporting things that need to be kept from the elements, then a box or van trailer would likely be a better choice.

Manufacturers such as Great Dane, Wabash and many others provide flatbed trailers for trucking companies as well as owner/operators. If you are planning to purchase your trailer new, then you should have no problem finding a reliable product from one of the many trailer manufacturers across the nation. If however, you are planning to purchase a used trailer, then you should be certain to inspect the trailer before you make your final purchase. You can save potentially thousands of dollars by purchasing a used trailer, just as long as you know what you are looking for and how to determine its true worth.

Online sites offer many opportunities to find and purchase used flatbed trailers for much less than new ones. These sites typically give you multiple photos and contact information for the seller, just in case you have questions that are not answered in the listing. When you are buying used products of any sort online, it is always best to make sure that all your questions are answered prior to the finalization of the sale. Typically, a new trailer will run you around $20,000 or more, but you can find many used ones online for less than $5,000. This is of course depending on the manufacturer, model and the overall condition of the trailer in question.

Everyone knows a Bulldog when they see it. The Bulldog has long been the symbol of the Mack truck. The company earned its nickname during World War I when the British government bought the Mack AC model in order to supply troops, food and equipment to its soldiers on the front line. Those British soldiers named the truck the Bulldog Mack due to the flat nosed hood which reminded them of the British mascot which was the British Bulldog. Since then the Bulldog has been a trucking industry favorite.

Today this is one of the leading truck manufacturing companies in the world. Now a subsidiary of Volvo, the company headquarters are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the United States. Primary manufacturing facilities for Mack trucks are located in Macungie, Pennsylvania and in Dublin, Virginia. The company today enjoys being one of the top producers of vocational vehicles from Class eight through Class thirteen. It also produces off road trucks. The Bulldog logo is very distinctive on the front of each truck.

Mack trucks have been sold throughout the company’s history in a total of forty-five countries. Right hand driven vehicles are currently produced in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and are distributed worldwide. Plants are also located in Caracas, Venezuela as well as Hagerstown, Maryland in the United States. These trucks hold the distinction of being one of the most popularly driven heavy duty trucks on the road due to their longevity and dependability.

It was early in the 1960s that the then executive vice president of engineering, Walter May developed the Maxidyne high-torque rise engine which has given Mack trucks much of their rise to popularity. The engine was first evident in 1968 with the new line of trucks. The placement of the Maxidyne engine became an event that would change the trucking industry forever. The engine allowed for a heavy duty Class 8 truck to be operated with a 5 speed transmission. Before this time heavy duty trucks held 10 gears or more. The development of the Maxidyne engine became one of the most popular aspects of the Mack truck and drivers everywhere were soon anxious to drive one of these miracle trucks. Since that time the company has enjoyed being one of the most popularly chosen truck brands of all time. Given the history behind their logo it is not surprising that this tough competitor has outlasted many others.

Do you need an extended warranty for your truck or are you thinking about buying a new or used truck anytime soon? I do not want to scare you, but there are a large number of options available when it comes to truck warranties. When you buy a new or used truck, the dealer or salesman is going to try and sell you an extended warranty. Before you step foot into the dealership, you should know exactly what type of truck warranty you want and what you should expect to pay.

One thing to keep in mind is that an extended truck warranty is not going to cover everything that could happen to it or go wrong with your truck. You need to know what types of things can be covered by warranty. If you do not know what you need or want, there are a few basics that you will want to have in a truck warranty plan.

One feature to look for is roadside assistance. This will help you out any time your truck breaks down, has a flat tire or you lock yourself out of the truck. The warranty company will send out a repair person, towing service or locksmith to help you out and you should not have to pay any out of pocket expense for it. You should look for roadside assistance programs that have toll-free customer support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Anything less than that is unacceptable.

Another feature to look for is bumper-to-bumper coverage. With bumper-to-bumper coverage, any component that breaks or fails to work property should be repaired or replaced at the warranty company’s expense. This will not cover routine, wear-and-tear things like oil changes, tire replacement and so on and it will not cover damages from automobile accidents (that’s what your insurance is for).

Do your homework before purchasing a truck warranty and you will be happy with the results and you will be confident that you are not overpaying for the services. Use the Internet to research different companies and get quotes from several before you step foot into the truck dealership. Then when the dealer tries to push their warranty coverage on you, you will know if it’s a good deal or not. If it’s not, don’t be afraid to use an alternative service (like one of the ones you got quotes from online). You do not have to purchase a warranty from the dealership. You have options. It’s your choice.

U.S. light vehicle sales fell 6.9% to about 1.25 million sales in April from a year ago, hitting Detroit’s automakers hard, as the pinch of $3.60-a-gallon gas combined with a struggling U.S. economy to drive a strong consumer shift to more fuel-efficient cars and crossovers from large trucks.

The shift led to sales and market-share declines at General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC, which have historically relied on truck sales. GM and Ford, however, noted jumps in car and crossover sales for the month, compared with a year ago.

Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. also felt the impact of fewer consumers choosing pickups and SUVs, but they overcame that squeeze with increased sales of cars.

“The reason for the take down is because of rising oil prices,” said Mark LaNeve, GM North America vice president of sales, service and marketing. “What we did not count on is oil hitting as high as almost $120 a barrel. What that’s doing is causing a sharp shift to cars and crossovers from large trucks.”

The highlights:

*GM reported sales of 257,638 vehicles in April, down 16.2% from the same month last year.

*Ford sales fell 12.1% to 200,007 in year-over-year comparisons.

*Chrysler reported April sales of 147,751, down 23.5% from the same month last year.

*Toyota reported a sales increase of 3.4% to 217,700 vehicles.

*Nissan posted a 6.7% overall sales increase for the month to 75,855.

Honda suffered a technical problem Thursday that kept it from reporting April sales. But it estimated that U.S. economic trends would push it to an all-time record for April — 134,400, a 6.7% increase — because its U.S. lineup consists primarily of small cars and small SUVs.

GM said retail sales of cars and crossovers rose more than 9%, but did not make up for declining truck sales and a sharp decline in fleet deliveries that GM said were impacted by the strike at supplier American Axle & Manufacturing Inc., which has reduced or stopped production at 31 GM plants.

LaNeve blamed the American Axle strike for costing GM 15,000 units of fleet sales last month. He expects that GM will not lose those sales, but instead will record them once the Axle strike is over.

GM’s drop in total sales was swayed largely by the Chevrolet Silverado pickup — where sales fell 24.7% to 37,231 last month from 49,436 a year ago — and the GMC Sierra pickup, where sales fell 21.7% to 13,196 from 16,849.

While they trade in smaller volumes, GM’s cars showed widespread gains, with the Chevrolet Aveo, Cobalt and Malibu; the Cadillac CTS, the Pontiac Vibe and the Saturn Aura all up by double-digit percentages from a year ago. And GM executives said they are looking for ways to increase production of the hottest selling vehicles quickly, even as it announced shift reductions at four North American truck plants earlier this week.

“Consumer preference is shifting and we’re shifting with it,” LaNeve said. “Throughout the industry, truck sales have been soft. We’ve been able to match the current economic slowdown with historically low total inventories, as we look for ways to increase car and crossover production.”

The trend repeated at Ford, where retail sales of its cars and crossovers also grew, led by a 43.5% increase in sales of the Ford Focus to 23,850 from 16,626 a year earlier.

Ford’s crossovers, led by the midsized Edge and smaller Escape, continue to perform well in dealer showrooms, with an overall gain of 11%.

Like GM, however, the gains in car and crossover sales weren’t enough to overcome losses on the truck side.

The F-Series pickups, Ford’s best-selling vehicle line and a major contributor to companywide profits, posted a decline of 21% to 44,813 for the month from 56,692. For the year, F-Series sales are now down 15.5%.

“We continue to see movement toward small and midsize cars as well as car-based crossovers,” Ford sales analyst George Pipas said. “I think it’s fair to say the trend is accelerating in 2008. I think we can tie the acceleration to gas prices.”

Chrysler Executive Vice President of North American sales Steve Landry said gas is certainly a factor in the declines in sales of larger vehicles, but general uneasiness about the U.S. economy has also played a role.

“We’re seeing higher monthly payments coming in and trading in for lower monthly payments,” Landry said.

Jessica Caldwell, an analyst at Edmunds.com said there are a lot of factors causing the shift.

“I think part of it is gas prices, but it’s also the economy in general,” Caldwell said. “When people had more equity in their houses, they felt good, they felt secure. Maybe they got a bigger car and didn’t worry about gas prices. But when you lose equity, and now with the gas prices as high as $4 a gallon, people start to downsize.”

And, Caldwell said, there’s no sign that the trend will end soon, so the domestic automakers are scrambling to let consumers know what they’ve got and meet the demand.

“I think we’re going to continue to see this trend toward small cars and crossovers,” she said. “Right now, a lot of people think of the imports when they think of smaller vehicles. I think the manufacturers are going to begin marketing those cars better than they have. And I think we’ll see these manufacturers look into their global portfolios to see what they can bring to the United States right now.”

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Often times, people decide to purchase a large truck to haul very heavy loads. If that is not your intention, and you’d like to purchase a truck to drive more like a car (with quick, quiet acceleration), you may want a gasoline engine. 

There are three main benefits to this that is  Gas engines run smoother,  Fuel is easier to find and  Gas engines start easier in cold weatherIf, however, your intent is to use your truck for towing, you may want to consider a diesel engine. The three main benefits to this are  Good fuel economy,  High mileage and  Better for towing

Now, the price of a diesel truck is very high, but it very well may be worth it. They have many benefits, and could very well save you a good deal of money in the end. Benefits vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. You can compare these benefits below:

Ford

In 1994, Ford introduced its international engineered power stroke diesel. This pushed the 3/4 ton and 1 ton truck market to where it is today. Before this, the big one inch gasoline engines made these poorly built diesels barely considerable. Over 70% of super duty Fords were sold with the optional 7.3L V-8 diesel engine from 1994-2002. Because of this engine, Ford became one of the leaders in diesel trucks.

Dodge

In 2002, Ram didn’t have enough power with the 245 HP 9.5L, so Dodge promised more powerful engines for the 2500/3500 platform, and they definitely followed through on their promise: the 2500 and 3500 Dodge Ram Heave Duty trucks are the newest ¾ and 1 ton trucks on the road.

The new base engine is the 5.7L gasoline V-8, which revives the well-known, historical Hemi name, as it is the most powerful engine of the group at 345 HP.

Chevrolet/GMC:

Coming standard with GM’s 6.0L gas engine V-8 are the GM 2500/3500 twins Silverado HD and Sierra HD. The engine is ideal for ¾ ton trucks where towing isn’t a concern. Based on Chevrolet’s venerable big block engine are the upgrades that start with the 8.1 gas V-8.

Diesel trucks have proven to be:

Efficient with mileage
Great for towing
Easy on maintenance

Also, you won’t need to get them tuned up nearly as much as gasoline engines, because-unlike gasoline engines-diesel engines do not have spark plugs.