The loss of federal electric vehicle tax credits at the end of September resulted in flat sales of new vehicles in October, the Greater Cleveland Automobile Dealers’ Association reported this week.

However, looking at year-to-date figures, dealers in the association’s 21-county area that includes Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties sold 195,069 new vehicles. The number represents an increase of 5.81% over 2024.

“We expected a larger slide than what transpired last month and remain confident that new vehicle sales will remain on pace to close out 2025 with 3% to 5% growth over 2024,” said Louis A. Vitantonio, association president.

New vehicle purchases totaled 20,359 last month, which was 1.11% lower than October 2024 receipts.

Vitantonio said used vehicle sales in Northern Ohio grew 3.68% last month compared to October 2024. He attributed that to price reductions on available dealer inventory.

Last month, sales of previously owned vehicles numbered 17,966. Overall, 175,064 used vehicles were bought, a difference of 2.41% compared to last year.

Fairway Ford of Canfield sold 280 new and used vehicles in October to lead Mahoning Valley dealerships. The numbers include buyers in Trumbull, Mahoning and Columbiana counties combined with Ohio buyers outside of the three-county area, the association said. Boardman Subaru (275) and Ken Ganley Kia of Boardman (256) were second and third.

In Trumbull County, Klaben Ford Lincoln reported 133 used and new vehicle sales for October, followed by Sims Buick GMC (118) and Diane Sauer Chevrolet (108). The three dealerships are located in Warren. Kufleitner Chrysler Dodge Jeep and Ram Trucks of Columbiana (81), Columbiana Ford (50) and Salem Chrysler Dodge Ram Jeep (34) were the top Columbiana County performers in October.

Car buyers in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties made Boardman Subaru their top choice. They accounted for 256 new and used car sales in October and bought 2,524 for the year. Ken Ganley Kia of Boardman (245, October, and 2,092, year to date) and Fairway Ford (213, October, and 1,895, year to date) were in second and third positions.

Dealerships recording more than 100-plus new car sales for October were Boardman Subaru (165), Toyota of Boardman (135), Ken Ganley Kia of Boardman (133), Fairway Ford (122) and Greenwood Chevrolet (107).

Ken Ganley Kia of Boardman broke the century mark in used car sales for October with 165, which represented an increase of 28 from October 2024.

Despite a slight drop in growth, Chevrolet notched 2,897 new vehicle sales last month to top the leaderboard in Northern Ohio. Ford reported 2,434 sales in the region. Toyota was third with 1,856 vehicles sold, ahead of Honda’s 1,842. Kia ranked fifth with 1,783 sales.

Tesla is bouncing back from a rough year with 338 sales last month, an increase of 40.25% from October 2024. For the year, Tesla sales are 4.46% lower compared to the same period last year.

Vehicle sales data includes all dealers in 21 counties: Ashland, Ashtabula, Carroll, Columbiana, Coshocton, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Holmes, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Richland, Stark, Summit, Trumbull, Tuscarawas and Wayne.

The association represents more than 280 franchised motor vehicle dealers, which include new-car, truck, motorcycle and RV dealers in 32 Ohio counties.

More information can be found at www.gcada.org.