Chrysler's sales rise in a down month Chrysler Group's 7 percent sales increase in August bucked the industry's 21 percent tumble. There are several reasons Chrysler was able to enjoy its fifth straight month ...
AutoNation to bid on ‘multiple' Fiat franchises AutoNation Inc. said today it plans to bid on "multiple" Fiat franchises after Chrysler unveiled its plans for the brand to dealers at a meeting in Detroit on Monday. COO ...
AUGUST U.S. SALES
BMW's U.S. sales top Lexus' for third straight month BMW AG's namesake brand increased U.S. sales 1.6 percent in August and beat Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus as the top U.S. luxury brand for the third straight month. Lexus re ...
AUGUST U.S. SALES
U.S. auto demand falls to weakest level since February U.S. auto sales dropped to their weakest rate since February as most automakers posted sharp declines from a year earlier, when the U.S. cash-for-clunkers program fueled ...
August 2010: a real clunker on the new-car sales front Any way you look at it, August U.S. auto sales disappointed. Compared with “clunker August” a year ago, sales fell 21 percent. Compared with the month before, ...
GM posts gains for 3 of 4 brands, but Chevy falls 22% General Motors Co. posted strong August sales at three of its four remaining brands. But Chevrolet, struggling with tough comparisons against last year's cash-for-clunker ...
Ford to keep N.A. production stable in Q3 Ford Motor Co. will hold fourth-quarter North American production at the same level as the third-quarter of this year and down slightly from the last quarter of 2009 beca ...
AUGUST U.S. SALES
Toyota sales plummet, but still lead retail race Toyota Division sales may have fallen 34 percent in August -- and are now down 1 percent for the year to date -- but General Manager Bob Carter isn’t panicking. Toy ...
Chrysler posts another gain, led by Jeep Chrysler Group recorded its fifth consecutive month of year-over-year increases, as August sales rose 7 percent. Fresh from its bankruptcy exit a year earlier, Chrysler h ...
AUGUST U.S. AUTO SALES
Sales expected to be sluggish as recovery lags, analysts say The U.S. auto industry felt like it dodged a bullet in July when retail sales to consumers held up and confounded forecasts for a drop, but then August came and that sens ...
JOHN K. TEAHEN JR.
Sales recovery is slowing down The auto sales recovery is slowing down. Not much, but enough to trouble those who earn a living by watching such numbers. John K. Teahen Jr. is senior editor of Au ...
Ewanick: Silverado ads will embrace the family feud of pickup world General Motors Co.’s new marketing chief, Joel Ewanick, said today that Chevrolet is preparing an ad campaign for October that captures the banter that happens when ...
Prices of used SUVs, crossovers surge 30% from last year, Edmunds says Some used SUVs and crossover vehicles are selling at retail for 30 percent more than they did last year, in a sign of how high used-vehicle prices remain. But on average, ...
AUGUST U.S. AUTO SALES
J.D. Power forecasts 15 percent sales decline in August The slow economic recovery, coupled with lower incentives compared with a year ago, probably will translate into a 15 percent drop in U.S. light-vehicle sales in August f ...
Hyundai cracks Kelley Blue Book's top 5 most-considered brands Hyundai has moved into the top five most-considered brands by new car shoppers, sending the former fifth most-considered brand, Nissan, into sixth place, according to Kel ...
2010 MANAGEMENT BRIEFING SEMINARS
China headed for one-quarter of global auto sales, J.D. Power says China’s market for light vehicles is expected to total 15.8 million this year, up from 13 million last year, despite a sales slowdown this summer, J.D. Power and As ...
Like industry, AutoNation sales up 5 percent in July AutoNation Inc.’s new-car sales last month mirrored the national U.S. increase, rising 5 percent on the strength of domestic and luxury brands. Import vehicles, Aut ...
Hyundai, Kia post record July U.S. sales Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. each posted record U.S. sales for the month of July. ...
JULY U.S. AUTO SALES
U.S. sales rise 5% in July; mixed results are year's 3rd-best General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. posted their smallest U.S. sales gains of the year, while America Honda Co. and Toyota Motor declined as July results fell short of ...
Camry roars back … and other July highlights It's no real surprise that July's year-over-year gain of 5 percent is lower than the industry's percentage increase in the first half of the year: The comparisons are tou ...
Toyota says loyalty rate is back up For the first time since the January recall frenzy, Toyota says its conquest ratios have returned to historical levels. Typically, about 45 percent of Toyota sales come f ...
BMW closing in on Lexus, Mercedes in luxury battle BMW AG's namesake luxury brand increased U.S. sales 16 percent in July to close the gap among top-selling luxury brands with Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus, which was little ...
Ford to increase Lincoln output starting in September Ford Motor Co., responding to dealer concerns, plans to boost output of Lincoln vehicles in the fourth quarter. The automaker declined to specify the amount of the increa ...
GM, up 5%, sees momentum building GM executives said the automaker's higher sales last month — up 5 percent from July 2009 — shows the industry is building steady momentum despite mixed signal ...
Jeep paces Chrysler to fourth straight monthly gain Buoyed by the Wrangler and the redesigned 2011 Grand Cherokee, Jeep brand sales rose 19 percent in July, pacing Chrysler Group to a 5 percent gain for the month. It was t ...
Ford expects slight boost in July sales, thanks to F-series Ford said sales of new light vehicles in July will trump results in the year-ago period, largely due to increased demand for the F-series pickup. In July 2009, Ford sold ...
Ford sees more profits ahead in 2011 after big first-half After posting its biggest first-half profit in 12 years, Ford Motor Co. is sticking with plans to boost earnings next year even as “business conditions” remai ...
Ford may earn $1.62 billion in Q2 as prices for new cars rise Ford Motor Co. may report adjusted second-quarter profit of $1.62 billion tomorrow as CEO Alan Mulally's overhaul of the lineup lets the company charge more for new model ...
AutoNation's Jackson says U.S. market will gain strength this year Driven by better availability of consumer credit, U.S. demand for new vehicles should continue rebounding in the third-quarter, despite a tough comparison to 2009 because ...
Chrysler considers third shift for Jeep Grand Cherokee With dealer orders for the redesigned Jeep Grand Cherokee exceeding expectations, Chrysler Group may add a third production shift at the Detroit plant where the SUV is as ...
U.S. commercial truck sales up 10% in June Sales of medium- and heavy-duty trucks in the United States rose 10 percent in June from a year earlier to 22,096 units. Commercial-truck sales have risen every month thi ...
Mercury production to end in late September, early October Ford Motor Co. will begin the wind-down of Mercury production in late September. Ford wants to shutter the 71-year-old brand and dealer network by Dec. 31. According to s ...
GREEN CARS
Toyota will launch green-car barrage in 2012 Toyota plans to introduce three new-to-market green vehicles in 2012, a company source said. A battery electric vehicle, a plug-in version of the Prius and an as-yet-unve ...
Used-vehicle prices slip for first time in 6 months After six consecutive months of increases, used-vehicle prices in June declined when compared with the previous month, according to the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index. ...
Automakers hold line on discounts as sales moderate Automakers -- disappointed in June sales -- are extending discounts and in some cases modestly hiking rebates and enhancing loan terms on new cars and trucks to entice sk ...
JOHN K. TEAHEN JR.
June’s tune: Better than last year It was better than last year, but still far from good. That assessment can be held in type and hauled out every 30 days to describe sales of cars and light trucks in the ...
June sales got a pick-me-up from pickups If there's a bright spot in June's tepid light-vehicle sales, it came from an unlikely segment. After slumping for several years as the economy tanked and gas prices spik ...
June in a nutshell: A tepid start to the rest of the year U.S. sales rose 14 percent in June, giving the industry a 17 percent gain for the first half of the year. The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate slipped to 11.1 millio ...
U.S. sales advance 14% in June amid signs of slowdown U.S. light-vehicle sales rose 14 percent in June, with major automakers posting some of their smallest gains of the year amid signs of sagging consumer confidence and a c ...
Toyota starts year-end closeout a month earlier than usual Toyota Division will start its annual summer clearance sale in July instead of counting on its traditional August blowout. Toyota Division General Manager Bob Carter said ...
Mercury gains 26% in its final June as Ford clears out inventory Mercury matched its biggest monthly advance of the year in June -- 26 percent -- and Ford Motor Co. said it is ahead of schedule in selling off the doomed brand's remaini ...
Porsche leads Europeans in a hot-cold month Driven by new products, about half of European brands outpaced the U.S. market's 14 percent sales gain in June. Smart continued to stagger, with sales of the ForTwo micro ...
JUNE U.S. AUTO SALES
Light vehicle sales may stall in ‘tortoise-like' U.S. recovery U.S. auto sales this month probably posted the smallest increase since February as consumers concerned about unemployment and the economy avoid large purchases, analysts ...
JUNE U.S. AUTO SALES
June sales expected to beat 2009, but fall below May’s results New-vehicle sales are expected to increase in June over a year ago -- when demand was unusually weak -- with the rise expected to be as much as 17 percent, based on sever ...
Cadillac will offer free scheduled maintenance on all 2011s Cadillac said today it would offer free scheduled maintenance on its 2011 model year vehicles as part of its effort to improve customer service -- and to match similar of ...
There's more than one way to sell a new Mercury, S.C. dealer says. For months, O.C. Welch and his used-car manager toyed with the idea of holding a public auction to sell his dealership's used-car inventory. It was finally set for the we ...
NEWS ANALYSIS
Good sales news? Close, but no cigar Make no mistake: U.S. sales of new cars and trucks are improving. May was the best month of the year, and the future looks even brighter. But don't get the idea that the ...
Ford offers payouts to Mercury dealers based on percentage of business Ford Motor Co. is offering the 1,700 dealerships with a Mercury franchise a cash compensation for the loss of the brand. The compensation figures, delivered to dealers in ...
NEWS ANALYSIS
Hyundai posts record May sales as Ewanick's influence carries on So far, the post-Joel Ewanick era at Hyundai Motor America is working out pretty well -- although it's clear the marketing executive's innovations are still paying divide ...
Mercury production to end in Q4 Ford Motor Co. will discontinue its 71-year-old Mercury brand and end production of vehicles in the fourth quarter, Mark Fields, Ford's president of the Americas, said to ...
GM pulling away in 2010 sales battle; Ford division widens lead among brands All major automakers posted gains in May -- ranging from Chrysler's 33 percent to Toyota's 7 percent -- as the light-vehicle sales rate hit its highest level this year. S ...
MAY U.S. AUTO SALES
U.S. monthly sales surge 19%; Detroit 3 in double digits while Toyota lags All major automakers except Toyota reported double-digit U.S. sales gains in May, as the light-vehicle sales rate hit its highest level since December. Sales rose 19 per ...
GM's 17% sales gain driven mostly by fleet sales Most of General Motors Co.'s 17 percent sales increase this month was in fleet sales. Sales to individual customers only increased 7 percent, while fleet sales increased ...
Toyota continues spiffs, but Lexus drops cut-rate leases Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. remains bullish for the rest of the year for both its Toyota-Scion and Lexus divisions. Toyota Division will continue to support sales with heft ...
F-series, Fusion pace Ford's 22% gain in May Hot F-series pickups and Fusion sedans boosted Ford Motor Co.'s May U.S. sales 22 percent to 196,671 light vehicles. F-series pickup sales jumped 49 percent to almost 50, ...
Chrysler tops 100k in monthly U.S. sales; first time in 14 months Paced by its Dodge brand, Chrysler Group reported a 33 percent sales increase last month. Chrysler sold 104,819 units in May, just a year after the company's first month ...
MAY U.S. AUTO SALES
Ford, Honda discounts drive longest streak of gains in 10 years Ford Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. added rebates and discounts to attract buyers over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, driving what may be the longest ...
Ford says May U.S. sales will reflect ‘modest recovery' Ford Motor Co.'s chief sales analyst expects the U.S. industry's annual sales rate to top 11.1 million vehicles in May, the third straight month above that mark. “ ...
April sales gain in Mexico is first since July 2008 Sales of new light vehicles in Mexico rose for the first time in almost two years in April. Sales rose 2 percent to 65,416 cars and trucks, the first gain since a 3 perce ...
Lenders lower the bar as looser credit boosts auto sales Easier credit is fueling a recovery in new U.S. auto sales that are on pace for the fastest annual gain in 26 years. The market for bonds backed by auto loans is expandin ...
Toyota’s president considers record recalls a 'good lesson' Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda said scrutiny from inside and outside the company has been a “good lesson” and expects the carmaker to emerge stronge ...
Saab launches U.S. leasing campaign as inventory trickles in Saab Cars North America kicked off its first sales event as a new company today -- a leasing program for the 2010 Saab 9-3. Saab can move on the marketing front now that ...
For Ford shareholders, what a change from 2009 During the depths of the auto industry's collapse a year ago, Ford told shareholders at its annual meeting that they might have to wait until 2011 before the company star ...
THE TOYOTA RECALL CRISIS
Toyota faces skeptics as incentive luster fades Buyers were willing to overlook Toyota's safety troubles the last few months thanks to zero-percent financing and other deals, but as the lure of incentives fades, Toyota ...
SALES TALES
April sales move up 20%, trail 2007 by a mile April was another up-and-down month for sales of new cars and trucks in the United States -- up substantially from last year's horrific numbers but far, far below April 2 ...