Used commercial vehicle transactions in Classes 3-8 exceeded 711,000 units in the 2014 calendar year, according to a new report from IHS Automotive. In the past decade, that was bested only by a record level of 791,000 units in 2011.

Used transactions were up 4.6% over the 2013 calendar year and accounted for 52% of total combined commercial vehicle transactions in the 2014 calendar year.

“Clean used commercial vehicles remain in strong demand, even with the continued strengthening of the demand for new commercial vehicles,” said Gary Meteer, director, commercial vehicle solutions for IHS Automotive.

“The main challenge continues to be the availability of clean used equipment in the configuration required by small- to mid-size businesses looking to either replace older equipment or add to their fleet.”

Used transactions within each vehicle weight class increased over 2013.  Classes 3 and 8 vehicles remain the largest segments among used transactions, accounting for 30.8% and 38.1% of all used transactions, respectively, he said.

Class 8 was the largest single segment of the used-truck market last year, accounting for 271,000 units, again the highest number since 2011. In 2010, the number of Class 8 deals was even higher -- 320,000 units -- which represented the start of the recovery for commercial vehicles after the market bottom was reached in the 2009 calendar year. 

Overall, used commercial vehicle transactions among all weight classes last year improved over 2013 volumes and share, based on strong demand for low-mileage vehicles and an increase in trade-in volumes.