Toronto, Ontario – New cars and light trucks powered by four-cylinder engines are gaining popularity in Canada, according to a report by J.D. Power and Associates’ Power Information Network, which calls it “a predictable trend given the substantial rise in fuel prices in the past few months.”

The mix of four-cylinder engines for both cars and light trucks has climbed by more than two percentage points, when compared with the mix a year ago. At the same time, eight-cylinder engines are losing favour; while eight-cylinder engines remain much more popular in the light truck category, with more than one-third of vehicles so installed, only about one in 20 cars is so equipped. The installation rates for both five- and six-cylinder engines have remained steady.

Both cars and trucks with four-cylinder engines have consistently moved off dealer lots the fastest, both in the first four months of this year, and a year ago. Cars with eight-cylinder engines now sit on dealer lots for an average of 67 days. This is higher than the retail turn rate for other categories, but down substantially when compared to a year ago, when eight-cylinder cars sat for more than twelve weeks on average.