FORD EDGE IS LEASETRADER.COM DOMESTIC VEHICLE OF THE YEAR FOR 2010 PERFORMANCE

MIAMI – (January 18, 2011) – LeaseTrader.com, the nation’s most popular car leasing marketplace, announced today its report on the vehicles, brands and categories with the most growth during 2010 in the car leasing marketplace. Domestic brands such as Ford and Cadillac made the biggest jump in demand and transactions on LeaseTrader.com during 2010. The Ford Edge won domestic car of the year from LeaseTrader.com based on volume of customer searches and takeovers among all domestic brands during 2010.

LeaseTrader.com analyzed vehicle brand performance during 2010 in categories including compact, SUV/crossover, sedan and luxury, the four most popular segments in the online marketplace. For the first time in LeaseTrader.com history, domestic vehicles were represented in the top five for each of the above-mentioned categories (historically heavy on import vehicles). Previously, domestic brands never made more than three of the four categories. The other noticeable trend is that entry-level luxury continues to dominate popularity in leasing (Mercedes C Class, BMW 3 Series and Lexus IS).

The Crossover/SUV category saw three of the top five vehicles come from domestic makers (Ford Edge 1st; Cadillac SRX 3rd; Lincoln Navigator 4th). The BMW X5 was second and the Mercedes GL350 finished fifth in the category.

Cadillac CTS again makes the top-five cut in the sedan category by finishing third, the second straight year in this segment. The Ford Fusion finished fifth in the category, its first time making a top-five list for the LeaseTrader.com marketplace. Other vehicles in this segment include the BMW 5 Series, Mercedes E Class and Lexus ES.

The Cadillac CTS finished third in the luxury category, followed by the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C Class, which were first and second. The Lexus IS and BMW 5 Series were fourth and fifth rounding out the segment.

For the third straight year the Honda Civic topped the compact category, followed by the BMW Mini, Ford Focus, Lexus IS and Mazda 3.

While domestic brands and vehicles made significant strides in all categories during 2010, the BMW 3 Series again had a dominating presence, winning the luxury category on its way to becoming LeaseTrader.com’s import vehicle of the year for the third straight year.
Domestic brands made 7 of the 20 available positions in total, the most seats achieved since 2005 when six positions were held by domestic vehicles based on marketplace performance on LeaseTrader.com.

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