A snapshot of fleet buying plans for the next quarter shows about half planning to buy power units and many saying they're not going to pre-buy engines ahead of 2010 emissions regs.


The Fleet Sentiment Report from CK Commercial Vehicle Research analyzes survey responses from 52 fleets across a sampling of fleet type and size. It found 52 percent plan to place orders in the next three months for power units and 40 percent for trailers, which is slightly up from the previous quarter for power units and down for trailers. All the government fleets in the survey were planning to place power orders.

The number of fleets who are adding capacity with their power unit purchases has fallen from last quarter to only 30 percent. For the most part, power unit purchases are being made to replace older units.

When asked about 2010 purchasing plans, only 25 percent said they would avoid purchasing in 2010. Forty percent said they would not avoid purchasing in 2010, and 35 percent were undecided.

"A couple of quarters ago, we reached what we thought at the time might be a milestone (or tipping point) when 50 percent of our respondents indicated they were planning to avoid 2010 emission-compliant models when they were first introduced," writes Chris Kemmer. "Since that time we've seen a steady reversal of that trend, with more and more fleets indicating they might NOT avoid these models."