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Used-Car Market Is Booming—But Not for These Vehicles

  • Sales of cars between five and 12 years down 1.4 million units
  • Economist blames the ‘Great Recession’ for lack of supply
Vehicles on display at a dealership in Los Angeles, California

Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

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America’s used-car business is facing a mid-life crisis: dealers are selling tons of late-model cars and a lot of dinosaurs, but sales of autos in their middle years are declining.

And that’s bad news for some car salesmen. Independent dealers are showing up at auctions looking for their bread and butter: the six-year-old vehicle at a certain price point.