Some of the reasons cited for continued strong commercial fleet volume included buyers accelerating their replacement plans in order to get vehicles with more safety features, better fuel efficiency and ADAS.

The potential of the UAW striking one of the three manufacturers it is negotiating with in the fall is considered high by some industry watchers. The effects likely would hit Ford sooner than either GM or FCA, but even companywide shutdowns of just a couple days to a week would lead to ramifications at each. In some cases, losses would be tough to make up, and with market demand declining, there might not even be attempts to replace lost output on some vehicles.

Large-truck growth is being boosted by increased demand for fleet vehicles. Manufacturers have been targeting small businesses more so than in the past to prime light-vehicle commercial volume.

If Q4 follows the pattern of the past five years, sales will strengthen to a SAAR well above 17 million units, and raw volume in 2019 likely will end at 17.0 million or 17.1 million

In part spurred by commercial fleet demand, large trucks as a group recorded a sales increase of 14.7%.