COLORADO’S NEW CAR REGISTRATIONS RISE IN APRIL

New car and truck registrations in Colorado were up in April even as the industry continues to slump nationwide, according to a report Monday from the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association.

There were 14,724 new auto registrations in April, a 8.9 percent increase from a year earlier. Yearto-date, new registrations are up 4.9 percent, to 66,816 compared with 63,724 this time last year.

“The Colorado trend is positive, while the national trend is slightly negative,” president Tim Jackson said in a statement. “Consumers are still benefiting from manufacturers’ and dealers’ incentives, relatively low fuel prices, affordable interest rates and readily available credit for most buyers.”

Registration numbers typically run about two months behind sales. Nationwide, new car and light truck sales in April were down 4.85 percent year over year, according to U.S. Department of Commerce data.

On the used side, vehicle registrations in Colorado were up 15.1 percent in April year over year and 9.1 percent year-to-date. The report only counts used vehicles seven years old or newer.

Jaguar, Volkswagen, Infiniti, Porsche, Audi and Subaru have been the top-selling brands so far this year, all seeing year-to-date growth above 14 percent in new registrations. BMW, Land Rover, Volvo, Dodge, Acura and MINI are the biggest losers, with new registrations down at least 13.5 percent year-to-date.