WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. -

In a certified pre-owned market that keeps gaining steam, the CPO programs of at least nine brands enjoyed their best February on record last month, based on reports from automakers.

February records were set for the Ford/Mercury, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda and Mercedes-Benz brands, as well as the Nissan, Subaru, Toyota and Volkswagen brands.

How did these brands fare? Below is a breakdown, with data provided by automakers and Autodata Corp.:

Starting with Ford/Mercury's program, it sold 14,539 certified rides (up 30.8 percent year-over-year)

Hyundai sold 5,627 CPO units last month for a 9-percent year-over-year hike.  Kia’s CPO sales came in at 2,103 units for the month (up 58.1 percent).

Over at Mazda, its dealers sold 2,638 certified vehicles in February (up 40.8 percent)

Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz moved 7,533 certified vehicles (up 25.9 percent year-over-year).

There were 8,507 certified Nissan brand cars sold last month, which was a 7.5-percent hike. Subaru's CPO sales reached 2,310 units, a 31.3-percent year-over-year jump.

Next up was Toyota, which sold 28,020 certified units. This was up from 27,565 CPO sales last February. Volkswagen sold 7,301 certified units for a 4.4-percent year-over-year increase.

Bigger Picture for CPO Bright, As Well

Looking at the overall CPO market, dealers had the most successful February ever in their certified operations, according to Autodata.  Not to mention, it was also the strongest daily selling rate ever, Autodata indicated.

The firm said there certified sales reached 156,947 units in February for a 5.1-percent year-over-year gain.  Through two months, CPO sales have climbed nearly 10 percent from the year-ago, hitting 307,572 vehicles.

This compares to 280,454 certified sales through February 2012. As for the daily selling rate for the month, Autodata indicated this best-ever figure was at 6,539.

February’s success stories come right after the best January sales total in the history of the certified pre-owned market, as well two straight years of record-breaking full-year CPO sales.
 

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