Make it three consecutive months of sequential declines for the Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index.

On Tuesday, Black Book released its February index, noting that the reading came in at 114.5. That figure represented a 0.8-percent dip from January when it was 115.4.

Editors added the index also has fallen 1.0 percent over the past 12 months.

As mentioned, Black Book indicated the overall index continued its slide for the third month in a row. All segments except for full-size vans showed a decline this past month. Those vans edged up by 0.56 percent while with most luxury vehicle segments sustained large declines.

In fact, editors determined segments such as midsize luxury CUV/SUV (down 2.13 percent) and sub-compact car (down 2.29 percent) saw some of the largest single-month declines in more than a year.

“The start of the spring selling season appears to be late this year, perhaps from slower and smaller tax refunds this year, as well as the harsher-than-normal winter weather patterns across much of the country,” Black Book executive vice president of operations Anil Goyal said.

“March should be a very telling month not only for spring, as it may likely set the tone for the remainder of the year,” Goyal went on to say.

The Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using Black Book’s published wholesale average value on 2- to 6-year-old used vehicles as percent of original typically-equipped MSRP. It is weighted based on registration volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage and condition.

The index dates to January 2005 where Black Book published a benchmark index value of 100.0 for the market. During 2008, the index dropped by 14.1 percent while during 2016, the index fell by just 6.4 percent.

During 2011, the index rose strongly from 113.3 to 123.0 by the end of the year as the economy picked up steam and used-vehicle values rose higher. It continued to remain relatively stable, rising slightly until May of 2014 when it hit a peak of 128.1.

To obtain a copy of the latest Black Book Wholesale Value Index, go to this website.