BANDON, Ore. -

The average premium commanded by certified pre-owned vehicles appears to have dipped from its peak this spring, and turn times are a bit slower, but take that with a grain of salt: both metrics are in relatively solid shape.

Data from CNW Research going back to 2010 indicates that dealers are still fetching much higher premiums on CPO cars than even as recently as 2012 and the first half of 2013 — and CPO premiums are still more than twice as high as they were in 2010, when the economic recovery was in its early stages.

CNW estimated in its latest Retail Automotive Summary that CPO premiums in August have averaged $2,842. That’s down from $2,881 in July and a year-to-date peak of $2,944 in June. It’s also a shade less than August 2013, when certified premiums were at $2,887, and would be the lowest level so far in 2014. 

But consider this from CNW’s data set: the average CPO premium has been above $2,800 in each of the last 14 months (counting August). 

In 2012, the premiums ranged from just under $2,100 to a little more than $2,300. Last year, they ranged from the $2,400s early in the year before racing up to annual high of $2,903 in the final month of 2013.

Those high levels, as well as the numbers from this year, are considerably stronger than the CPO premiums from 2010. In August of that year, for example, the average amount was $1,283.

CNW also provided some data regarding CPO turnover, which it defines as the number of days a certified car stays on a dealer’s lot before being sold.

The estimated rate for August (23.07 days) isn’t as good as the preceding three months — 22.64 in July, 22.51 in June and 22.46 in May — or most of 2013, but it’s comparable to figures from early this year and early last year.

Also, if you took the average CPO turnover for each of the 36 months between January 2010 through December 2012, only one (June 2011) would have a better rate than August 2014.