AutoVIBES: Nearly 60 Percent of Vehicle Shoppers Say Gas Prices Have Either Changed Their Minds or Strongly Influenced Vehicle Purchase Decisions

Fifty-nine percent of U.S. in-market vehicle shoppers say that gas prices have either changed their minds or strongly influenced purchase decisions, according to the August 2005 AutoVIBES, a monthly automotive study from Harris Interactive® and Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research tracking consumer automotive buying intentions. This is an increase of 13 percentage points since last month and an all-time high since AutoVIBES began tracking the effect of gas prices on vehicle choice in April 2004.

In addition, 42 percent of vehicle shoppers indicate that they would seriously consider a more fuel-efficient vehicle if gas prices were to increase an additional $0.25 above the current national average (which was $2.61 per gallon on August 26, 2005). This is an increase of 12 percentage points since last month and an all-time high since tracking began in April 2004.

"With prices for gas now skyrocketing above the psychological threshold of $3 per gallon in many areas, consumers are more interested in fuel-efficient cars than at any time in the last two decades," said Jack R. Nerad, editorial director and executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "Pump prices are not only pinching the pockets of today's SUV owners, but future owners as well, as we are seeing three and five year residual values on new SUVs begin to fall."

AutoVIBES is a monthly omnibus survey of approximately 2,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and over who plan to purchase or lease a new vehicle within the next 12 months. This survey was conducted August 26 - 29 on Kelley Blue Book's Web site (www.kbb.com), the most visited Web site among in-market vehicle buyers. The study was designed and analyzed jointly by Harris Interactive and Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research.

The data was weighted by demographics and propensity to reflect the general U.S. adult population of in-market vehicle buyers. Though this online sample is not a probability sample, in theory, with probability samples of this size, one could say with 95 percent certainty that the results have a sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points of what they would be if the entire U.S. adult population who plan to purchase or lease a new vehicle within the next 12 months had been polled with complete accuracy.

For more information about this study, please contact Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research at 949-268-3074 or Harris Interactive at 877-919-4765.

About Harris Interactive®

Harris Interactive Inc. (www.harrisinteractive.com), the 13th largest market research firm in the world, is a Rochester, NY-based global research company that blends premier strategic consulting with innovative and efficient methods of investigation, analysis and application. Known for The Harris Poll® and for pioneering Internet-based research methods, Harris Interactive conducts proprietary and public research to help its clients achieve clear, material and enduring results.

Harris Interactive combines its intellectual capital, databases and technology to advance market leadership through its U.S. offices and wholly owned subsidiaries, HI Europe in London (www.hieurope.com), Novatris in Paris (www.novatris.com), and through an independent global network of affiliate market research companies. EOE M/F/D/V.

To become a member of the Harris Poll OnlineSM and be invited to participate in future online surveys, visit www.harrispollonline.com.

About Kelley Blue Book (kbb.com)

Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com is America's most used and trusted vehicle pricing, values and information resource. The top-rated Web site provides the most up-to-date pricing and values for thousands of new and used vehicles, including the Blue Book® New Car Value, which reveals what people actually are paying for new cars. Since 1926, car buyers and sellers have relied upon Kelley Blue Book for authoritative and unbiased information to make well-informed automotive decisions. The company also reports vehicle prices and values via products and services, including the famous Blue Book® Official Guide and software products. Car buyers have rated kbb.com No. 1 in overall customer satisfaction and experience, according to a survey by Keynote Systems. Kbb.com also has been named the No. 1 automotive information site by Nielsen//NetRatings and the most visited auto site by J.D. Power and Associates seven years in a row. No other medium reaches more in-market vehicle shoppers than kbb.com; one in every four American car buyers complete their research on kbb.com.

SOURCE: Kelley Blue Book

CONTACT: Robyn Eckard, +1-949-268-3049, reckard@kbb.com, or Joanna
McNally, +1-949-268-3079, jmcnally@kbb.com, both of Kelley Blue Book

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Web site: http://www.kbb.com/