Don Ake, FTR vice president commercial vehicles commented, “This is another positive sign for Class 8 trucks. This is the second consecutive 20,000-unit month and proves that the July total was not a fluke, with a possible trend developing. Fleets are more confident, yet it is still mostly larger fleets purchasing replacement trucks. Medium-sized and smaller fleets remain cautious about ordering trucks.

“This is an odd situation. We are in a highly uncertain, yet very stable, environment. You have a pandemic, a presidential campaign, and social unrest all occurring at the same time. However, the economy is briskly recovering and generating ample freight. Fleets are ordering only what they need, and thus, orders are aligning very closely to production rates.



“We can expect orders to track in the current range until those risk factors are resolved. Right now, the market is in a holding pattern and may stay there through the rest of the year.”