NEW YORK — U.S. car sales are steering the way to a record year, according to CNNMoney.

In the month of November alone, stated the article, sales are projected to top 1.3 million, which would bring year-to-date sales to over 15.8 million vehicles.

These projections pave the way to sales topping the previous record set in 2000, during which approximately 17.4 million vehicles were sold, reported the article.

Several factors are pushing sales, continued the article, including low gas prices, easy access to car loans, strong employment and “continued pent-up demand for cars following years of depressed sales.”

Increasing home values and the rebound in the stock market also contribute to the growth in the automotive sales industry, added the article.

This growth is an incredible turnaround in the industry, informed the article, which experienced a plunge in sales during 2009 to nearly a 30-year low amid bankruptcies at Chrysler and GM.

During this time, stated the article, several industry experts believed it would take a decade or longer to bounce back to annual sales of 17 million vehicles.

However the steady economic improvement and the reorganization of automakers in the U.S. have resulted in six years of improved auto sales, noted the article, which is the first time this industry has experienced such a long span of increased demand.

Read the entire article here.

This influx in car sales will most likely result in significant growth for related industries, including the carwash market. In a past issue of Professional Carwashing & Detailing, Editorial Director Rich DiPaolo discussed how certain factors, such as increased car sales and the growing economy, are impacting the carwash industry. You can find this article here.