Though domestic manufacturers suffered slower November sales, the nation's franchised new-car dealers will set a sales record this year. According to figures from the National Automobile Dealers Association, U.S. car dealers will sell a record 17.5 million new vehicles in 2000; nearly half of those vehicles will be pickup trucks, SUVs and minivans.

"Dealers are on track to break 1999's record by more than half a million vehicles," said NADA Chief Economist Paul Taylor. "The outstanding performance is testament to an extremely efficient retail network and has been powered by net household wealth that nearly doubled in the past five years."

Total net wealth for U.S. households in 1995 was $12.3 trillion. It climbed to $22.4 trillion by the middle of this year, and even after paying for all the recounts in Florida, it is still expected to top that figure.

Taylor said that while sales have slipped toward the end of the year, dealers will likely see relatively strong sales for the foreseeable future. Actually, many import franchises have seen continued gains even in November, but the Big Three domestic manufacturers suffered significant drops in sales. Amazingly, this year's gains were achieved in the face of a one-point rise in interest rates.

"In historic terms, 17.5 million vehicles is uncharted territory," Taylor said. "It's important to remember that sales of 14, 15 or 16 million vehicles in future years would still indicate a healthy auto industry."