Auction volume dropped more than 2 percent sequentially last month, with most vehicle-age classes declining “sharply.” However, a late-model class of vehicles bucked the trend, spurred by rental-car sales in the lanes.

That’s according to the latest Guidelines report from NADA Used Car Guide, which said there was a 2.2-percent drop in AuctionNet wholesale transactions of vehicles ages 1-to-8-years-old (when comparing the four-week period ending Aug. 26 to the prior four-week frame).

Volume of vehicles from model years 2006 and 2007 fell 7.2 percent in this time frame; volumes for model years 2008 and 2009 units dipped 7.3 percent; and volumes for units from the 2010 and 2011 model years was off 10.4 percent.

But it was different story for vehicles from the 2012 and 2013, NADA UCG reported.

“As a collective, transactions for the two latest model years grew by 16.9 percent, largely due to a 30-percent (6,840 units) rise in MY ’13 volume consisting primarily of off-rental units,” Jonathan Banks, executive automotive analyst for the NADA Used Car Guide, said in the report.

Year-to-date, AuctionNet volume for vehicles up to 8 years in age has fallen 2 percent, NADA said.  However, that decrease is solely driven by the major drop in the 5- to 6-year-old vehicle category, where volume is down 29 percent from a year ago.

Volume for 7- and 8-year-old units is static, while the numbers for 1- to 2-year-old rides (up 5 percent) and 3- to 4-year-old cars (up 14 percent) have actually increased.

(Note: NADA explains this data is the “year-to-date change in auction volume by vehicle age. E.g. Ages 1-to-2 shows the difference between 2012–2013 MY volume in CY 2013 and 2011–2012 volume in CY2012.”)

Prices within Consignment Segments

In his latest analysis, Tom Kontos — executive vice president and chief economist for ADESA Analytical Services — dissected how various pieces of auction consignment behaved in August, price-wise.

What Kontos discovered is that manufacturer consignment prices dropped 1.4 percent from July, while increasing 7.1 percent year-over-year.

For fleet/lease consignment, prices jumped 1.3 percent from July. The year-over-year hike was three times as high (3.9 percent).

Lastly dealer-consigned units increased in price by 0.3 percent month-over-month while dipping 0.4 percent year-over-year.

Overall, wholesale prices climbed 2.3 percent sequentially in August and were up 1.4 percent year-over-year, reaching $9,654.

For car segments, they were up 2.6 percent month-over-month and 0.5 percent year-over-year. Truck price gains were 2.2 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively.

Joe Overby can be reached at joverby@autoremarketing.com. Continue the conversation with Auto Remarketing on both LinkedIn and Twitter.