Toronto, Ontario – The retail turn rate, or number of days a new vehicle stays on a dealer lot before it is sold, reached a five-month high of 64 days in October, according to a report by J.D. Power and Associates. The turn rate was also two days higher than in October 2007.

However, in each of the months from June through September 2008, the retail turn rate was lower than a year ago, which the company said suggests that, at least until recently, the Canadian market has not been facing the major headwinds experienced in the U.S.

Of the nine sub-segments with turn rates lower than the industry in October, all except one were compact or midsize vehicle categories; the exception was large van, which is a specialized niche sub-segment. All of the compact or midsize vehicle sub-segments that outperformed the industry in October were car-based vehicle sub-segments.

The report found that the compact basic sub-segment, which includes vehicles such as the Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit and Chevrolet Aveo, had a turn rate below 40 days in each of the past four months, including an industry-leading 35 days in October. At the other end, the turn rates for all three non-luxury utility sub-segments were higher than the industry results in October. The compact utility was the second-highest among all the sub-segments, and almost double the June rate. Pickup categories also had turn rates higher than the industry average in October.