What does the car industry know?

This week we find that according to the latest Edmunds' data, many of the same problems also afflict the used auto market.  The most startling takeaway from the report is that the percentage of used cars being traded in with negative equity values - which means that dealers lenders are willing to accept an immediate loss for new transactions - continues to rise and currently stands at an all-time high 32.4%, up from under 20% in 2009.  Moreover, the average balance of the negative equity also continues to rise and stood at a record $5,130 last year, up over a quarter from $4,075 a decade earlier.

I get that we have moved future car consumption forward, but the darn things are mobile.  In this case, the underwater cars are being returned to lots and marked to market. They still work, they transport themselves to large, cheap parking lots and can be moved from market to market.

The car industry is supposed to be good at this, I am not ready to say this blows up.