New car and truck sales in Hamilton County hit a road bump in September as the number of titled vehicles failed to rise over last year for the first time in 2012.
Sales in September compared to the same month in 2011 were unchanged at 923 units, according to the Hamilton County Clerk’s Office.
Still, for the year, new vehicle sales in the county are up 15.3 percent.
U.S. sales in September rose 13 percent from a year earlier to nearly 1.2 million, according to major automakers. If they stayed at that pace, they’d reach 14.9 million this year.
Low interest rates, aging vehicles that need to be replaced and appealing new models are the main drivers of this year’s consistently strong sales, said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst for the Edmunds.com automotive website.