Read our full analysis for a more in-depth look at these trends.
Autos: Stuck in a lower gear?
Auto demand appears to have tapped the brakes as rising costs and shifting preferences reshape the road ahead.
February 2026
Key takeaways
- New motor vehicle (“auto”) sales dropped back in January 2026 and remain well below where they were in 2019. That said, one piece of potentially good news is that Bank of America internal data on consumer vehicle loan (CVL) applications suggests the drop in January was likely exaggerated by bad weather stopping people getting out to the dealers.
- But affordability is also an important underlying issue, with new and used car prices and auto insurance having risen significantly in recent years. In Bank of America data, this issue appears to be weighing most on younger Millennials (30-36 years old), who have seen their monthly car loan payments rise by more than 60% on average compared to 2019 levels.
- Affordability has also weighed on demand for electric vehicles (EVs) with new EV loan originations falling sharply over the last few years. Again, it appears to be Millennials who have been pulling back the most.
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