Almost every major economic headline sounds unfavorable for auto retail.

Interest rates remain high. Gasoline prices are elevated. Consumer confidence is historically weak. Trade disputes are creating uncertainty and average new-vehicle prices remain close to $50,000.

Yet August new-vehicle sales are still projected around a 16.3 million SAAR.

That disconnect raises an interesting question.

Is the automotive consumer simply more resilient than expected—or is the headline sales number hiding a much more divided market?

Higher-income and prime-credit customers may still be purchasing normally while payment-sensitive buyers increasingly shift toward used vehicles, smaller models and hybrids.

If so, a healthy national SAAR may not mean the average dealership or average customer is healthy.

What are dealers actually seeing in the showroom?