September wasn't kind to the auto industry. Total U.S. light vehicle sales ended the month 2.9 percent below September 2006. The year-to-date (YTD) news wasn't very encouraging either; sales for the first nine months of 2007 are 2.8 percent below the same time last year. Of The Big 2.8, only GM finished the month (barely) in the black. Ford, Chrysler, and Toyota all posted declines compared with last September. Looking at our four-wheeled sampler, separating the winners from the losers is a matter of seeing who lost less.
Passenger Cars
The bad news: Chevy's Impala dropped about 1800 sales from August. The good news: the sales stalwart's up six percent compared to September last year; up 13.9 percent YTD. Chrysler's once-mighty 300 ain't so mighty no mo'. September sales dropped 13.2 percent, while annual sales fell 14.9 percent. Fusion sales offered Ford a glimmer of hope, rising 9.6 percent for the month, racking-up a 1.3 percent gain for the year. Toyota's killer Camry continues its sales growth, up 5.7 percent on the month and 7.1 percent for the year.
Pickup Trucks
Rebates reigned supreme. Despite slapping more cash on the hood and even more generous financing incentives, Chevy Silverado sales rose just one percent for the month. YTD, sales are down 1.9 percent. Dodge is also throwing cash at Ram buyers, which helped jack-up sales by 20 percent. Annual sales are up just 0.6, but it's still a victory (of sorts). Smaller cash rebates and not-quite-so-cut-rate financing aren't helping Ford's F-Series; sales were off a whopping 20.8 percent, running 12.9 percent total behind last year. Toyota revived its incentive campaigns on the Tundra, sending the texas-built pickup on its way to meeting its first-year sales goal of 200k units. Tundra sales rose 55.2 percent for the month and 57.9 percent YTD.
Truck-Based SUVs
Although Chevy's Tahoe sales for the month leaped by an amazing 52.2 percent (fleets?), YTD sales slipped 9.2 percent. Dodge's Durango's sales are MIA, sinking a titanic 49.6 percent; it'down 29.8 percent YTD. The Ford Explorer was almost as lost, dropping 31.9 percent, losing 24.2 percent YTD. Toyota's not immune to the SUV exodus: 4Runner sales sank 2.7 percent, down 16.8 percent YTD.
CUVs
After a brief rally in August, Chevy's Equinox dropped almost 5k units in September. It's down 4.1 percent for the month, and 21.1 percent for the year. The Pacifica is all at sea. September sales of Chrysler's hoary CUV are down a staggering 43.8 percent, and 29.6 percent below the first nine months of 2006. Ford's Escape helped The Blue Oval Boyz escape bankruptcy for another month. Escape sales rose 10.3 percent on the month and up 3.8 percent on the year. Toyota redesigned RAV-4 rocks. Sales increased 24.8 percent, 14.1 percent YTD.
New Models
Overall, GM's Lambda triplets (Acadia, Enclave, Outlook) racked-up over 12k sales in September. GMC's Acadia, up 800 units from August, continues to be the most popular of GM's Lambda CUVs. The Ford Edge continues edging-up from its drastic drop in July, with an increase of 1500 sales over August. Jeep's Compass wasn't so fortunate. It dropped 800 sales from August.
Total Sales
Although September sales fell below August's peak, GM finished the month 0.3 percent above the previous year. They're still below 2006 for the YTD, with a 6.6 percent drop. Chrysler and Ford both ended the month 5.4 and 20.4 percent respectively below September 2006. Chrysler is down three percent YTD and Ford is 13.3 percent lower YTD. Toyota finished below 2006 for the second month in a row, this time with a 4.4 percent deficit. However, YTD, they show a 3.8 percent increase.
The Future
As the 2007 model year winds down– with the usual clearance sales and the '08 models flooding into the showrooms– GM begins the new year with a new UAW contract. Under the new agreement, they're sure to force encourage a lot of their experienced workers to retire, resulting in a large labor turnover. What impact these changes will have on production, prices or quality remains to be seen. All three domestic automakers are saying the new union contracts will give them parity with Toyota and the other transplants. How quickly this will translate into better designs and an improved product– if at all– anyone's guess.
Um, mid cycle ~52% jump in sales for a full sized SUV? When was the last time that happened? Must be that cheap, plentiful, and green E85!
Toyotas drop can’t just be attributed to the forerunner, what else was down for them?
BostonTeaParty :
Toyotas drop can’t just be attributed to the forerunner, what else was down for them?
Percentage decrease from September 2006:
Scion -18.3% (all models combined)
Yaris -20.9%
FJ Cruiser -18.1%
Highlander -30.1%
Land Cruiser -47.9%
Sequoia -50.3%
Sienna -31.2%
Tacoma -16.1%
Those in the car business have to be working as hard as they ever did trying to steer their way through this “adjustment” in demand. In five years it will be the heroes that emerge from these times. Where is Lee when you need him? Will Alan M. earn his pay?
some factors that may be in Detroit’s favor are the falling dollar which will make imports even more expensive and car repairs aren’t getting any cheaper so some of us are going to have to buy soon. Even 13 year old Hondas need more than just an oil change.
Wow, who’d have thunk it? GM’s doing (something) right and Toyota is declining.
Maybe it’s time to cease the GM deathwatch and begin a Toyota deathwatch? Well, that would be a sensible idea, if we didn’t already know that Toyota will regroup and work out what is going wrong.
Have GM been at the incentives…..?
Highlander -30.1%
Land Cruiser -47.9%
Sequoia -50.3%
So even Toyota is discovering that it’s hard to sell bloated, gas guzzling behemoths in this climate. Good.
I hate to rain on the Impala’s parade but the Impalas of 2006 and 2005 were paid for in a low Canadian dollar. With the dollar rising so quickly, the money they were making on the Impala must be shrinking. Had one as a rental recently…not a bad car at all, I have to say.
Poor Ford…13.3 percent lower and over 20 percent down on the pickup? Not happy days in Dearborn. Pity in a way, I was hoping that the Fusion would be the next Taurus…metaphorically speaking.
And what is with the 300? Talk about a fall from grace. A couple of years back it was the talk of the town.
Tough, tough, industry to be in right now.
Highlander down 30.1% ?! The redesigned Highlander that looks better than its predecessor?! How do we explain this? Are both 4 and 6 cylinder versions still available?
Here’s the Top 20 Selling Vehicles for September – note the surge Honda and Nissan have had.
Ford F-Series 56,065 -20.8% 537,211 -12.9%
Chevrolet Silverado 52,480 1.0% 477,859 -1.9%
Toyota Camry 40,438 5.7% 365,140 7.1%
Honda Accord 35,031 26.2% 301,879 8.4%
Dodge Ram 30,100 20.0% 276,978 0.6%
Toyota Corolla / Matrix 29,550 -8.5% 291,981 -4.7%
Nissan Altima 27,871 41.1% 218,022 24.8%
Honda Civic 24,752 -6.0% 254,955 1.4%
Chevrolet Impala 23,172 6.0% 249,713 13.9%
Chevrolet Cobalt 19,794 30.1% 152,895 -14.4%
Honda CR-V 19,769 62.2% 167,223 44.1%
Toyota Tundra 19,571 55.2% 144,480 57.9%
GMC Sierra 18,445 4.8% 157,204 -1.6%
Honda Odyssey 16,464 19.4% 130,267 -6.5%
Chevrolet Tahoe 15,441 52.2% 109,644 -9.2%
Toyota RAV4 14,412 24.8% 131,946 14.1%
Toyota Tacoma 13,996 -16.1% 135,515 1.2%
Chevrolet TrailBlazer 12,669 -17.3% 103,450 -22.8%
Toyota Prius 12,494 19.1% 137,114 69.4%
Ford Fusion 11,966 9.6% 112,519 1.3%
Also hasn’t Toyota firmly taken 2nd Place from Ford in total US Sales? I saw a table that showed the percentage but cannot find it anymore.
Answer: Highlander no longer offers a 4 cylinder! Now we get to choose between a 209HP 3.3L, a 270HP 3.5L and the Hybrid. (Price range: $27,300 for the base, $39,900 for the Hybrid Limited — ouch!)
That’ll learn ’em!
What about the Koreans how did they do? I mean they seem to be the ones who will be the ones to beat.
Interesting to see the Yaris & Scion weak with $3/gallon gas. I guess all the folks who wanted one got one already. Toyota was probably smart not to set Scion up as separate dealer points.
yasth
What about the Koreans how did they do?
Hyundai – down 0.5% from last September, down 0.2% year to date
Kia – up 0.9% from last September, up 4.5% year to date
Daewoo (Chevy Aveo) – down 1.4% from last September, up 4.4% year to date
Count me in as an August statistic, for an 07 Accord. I wanted a Fusion, and tried to find one, but mostly loaded V6s on the lots. Just can’t find an I4 with ABS. Plus, each dealer has about 6 or less…….even the local Honda dealer had 40+ Accords to pick from. (Granted 80% are silver) So is Ford rationing Fusions?
indi500fan :
Interesting to see the Yaris & Scion weak with $3/gallon gas. I guess all the folks who wanted one got one already. Toyota was probably smart not to set Scion up as separate dealer points.
I remember reading somewhere (can’t put my finger on the exact reference right now) that Yaris sales were down because there was an unexpected demand for the 2-door hatchback and production wasn’t keeping up with demand.
Scion sales were down across the board, not only on the month, but also year to date. Their best-seller in September and YTD was the tC. The new larger xB doesn’t seem to be doing well in comparison to the old style. xA and xD sales combined weren’t as good as last year’s xA sales.
I’m going to keep an eye on Scion for a few months to see if this is a fluke or if Scion’s appeal is wearing off as they take the models upstream and make them larger, heavier, and less fuel-efficient.
indi- I think part of the Yaris question is found in the Fit sales, I think Honda has gotten supply up on those and sales are booming.
I think Edmunds showed Toyota’s average incentives dropped in August by a fair amount, if this is so, and continued in Sept the sales changes at Toyota and increases at Honda and Nissan may be there.
We know that August was a big fleet/”commercial” sales month for GM. Was this true in Sept also?
I don’t buy the idea that all the consumers suddenly said “Oh, I’ll get a GM” after blowing them off in June and July.
Cobalt up 30%? Puhleeeeeze! To Avis or Enterprise?
Tahoe 50%- Is this channel stuffing (or did they give a free cobalt with each)?
There are some very fishy numbers here.
Cheerio,
Bunter
indi500fan-
Yaris was a new vehicle last year, so there was lots of pent up demand. This year’s numbers are logically lower.
The Scion xA was replaced by the very similiar Scion xD. The Scion xB was replaced by a new, bigger xB. Both new models are just coming to showrooms in the last couple months, so slow sales may be due to production still ramping up. The tC is aging and sales are dropping accordingly.
As for not setting up Scion as seperate dealer network-that was a good move indeed. Scion will probably never have more than three models; certainly not enough to substain a seperate dealer network.
Of course, that brings us back to GM’s bloated dealer network. For model year 2008, Buick only has three models (although GM was at least smart enough to attempt to combine most Buick dealers with Pontiac and GMC). Hummer now only has two models (the H1 is discontinued). Saab only has three models. And while Saturn now has a full line up of vehicles (sans pickups), it started with basically a single vehicle (in multiple configurations and trim lines, though).
Frank- not surprised on the XB. The old one was spacious and frugal.
The new one drinks like a midsize sedan. It went from being unique to competing with the Matrix. Duh.
One thing is true: GM and Honda raised incentives over the past two months while Toyota reduced incentives. Yes, August was a big fleet month for GM and September was a big incentives month as well.
As for the Highlander, you’re all jumping to conclusions. The new Highlander has only been on sale for 2 months. Production is still ramping up. Let’s see what happens with Highlander sales in the next few months.
As for Scion, the new xD only went on sale in August and you should all know that Scion is production-limited on purpose by Toyota. The company themselves have said numerous times that Scion production will be limited to keep the brand from becoming too mainstream. You cannot expect continual sales growth at Scion because of that.
I have to say that Scion’s “upsizing” seemed a poorly thought out move on the part of Toyota. Just proves they are not infallible in Japan.
The whole point of the exercise was (I thought!) to offer low priced, JDM “like” cars which were to be “accessorized” (to use the old fashioned word) by their owner to make the car “their own.”
So going from 1.5 litres to 2.4 seemed like a good idea when gas prices are about 45% higher than they were on January 1, in the USA?! Not.
On the other hand, Toyota execs are (or at least used to be) smart enough to make changes when they make the inevitable mistake that is part of being in the human race. Hopefully they’ll take stock of what they’ve done with the Scion cars and back-pedal.
In fact, isn’t it about time to start REDUCING the size of every generation of every series of vehicle for awhile?
Anybody else stopped to compare (for example) the size of a 1973 Civic (sub-compact, 1.5 liters) to the size of a 2008 Civic (compact, far heavier, lots more engine displacement)?
glenn126: In fact, isn’t it about time to start REDUCING the size of every generation of every series of vehicle for awhile?
Anybody else stopped to compare (for example) the size of a 1973 Civic (sub-compact, 1.5 liters) to the size of a 2008 Civic (compact, far heavier, lots more engine displacement)?
Let’s also compare the sales of those first-generation Civics to sales of the 2007 models.
I seriously doubt that Honda would be selling 300,000+ Civics annually if the car had remained as small and spartan as the original model.
I had a 1977 CVCC hatchback. It was a great car, but I wouldn’t be considering a 2008 model as my next car if the Civic had remained that size.
BTW know what else I found highly fascinating about your article, Frank?
Prius is #19 in US sales.
How long before it’s #9? We’ll seeeeeeee…..
Has anyone else noticed that hollywood has been doing everything it can to try to help the 2.8? Pay atttention. You will notice that our celebrities and other media (like conservative talk radio types) have all been either taking endorsement deals, or are otherwise pushing American cars as being “back” both quality wise and fashion wise.
This push will either save Detroit, or bury it.
IF (big “if’) enough import owners switch to domestic, THEN the 2.8 will have their future in their own hands. Will they give people enough of a quality experience that they come back for a second round, or will they anger enough of the new buyers that they loudly protest and tell all their friends they will NEVER buy a domestic again?
We will have to wait a few years to see.
My prediction, they will fail. Cerberus will pump up Chrysler and sell it back to the public during this resurgence. GM will prove they are not flexible enough to bring back desirable cars at sufficient speed and their dealers will continue to aggravate. Ford will improve quality, but only enough for a low passing grade.
They will all be back to Deathwatch status in under five years. The falling dollar, VEBA deals (I am assuming all the contracts get signed), and celebrity endorsements will keep them all afloat for a while longer. Lack of quality will eventually get noticed by even the dullest of American buyers.
The “in crowd” has the power to give these guys another at bat, but they can still strike out.
It will be interesting to see how the new 2008 Accord does. The last-year-of-its-kind 2007 held sales remarkably well against the all new Camry. The 2008 Accord looks like it is a lot more car than a Camry. Maybe we will see Accord take the #1 sales spot again.
In mid-priced family cars GM and Ford find themselves in much the same spot they once put the “independent” brands in in the 1950s when GM and Ford battled for the top sales spots. Only now it is Toyota and Honda doing battle while everyone else argues over what is left.
Smaller cash rebates and not-quite-so-cut-rate financing aren’t helping Ford’s F-Series.
They’ve been selling 2007s with 0% financing for 60 months all summer, and now there’s $1000 rebate on top of it. How is that “not-quite-so-cut rate?”
Blame a lack of advertising effectiveness (swap your ride is a worthless campaign) and a need for a redesign to reinvigorate interest.
whynotaztec : cant find a 4cyl fusion? go buy the mazda 6- 4 banger,its basically the same car
@ pdub
Overall, Ford’s cash incentives on trucks tend to be the lowest of the Big 2.8. Their finance rate deals on 07 models are comparable with GM’s and Dodge’s. However, they have higher rates on their ’08s (which are on the lots now, too) than the other two.
(I’m referring to national incentive programs only. Regional or local sales campaigns may offer lower interest rates and/or larger cash bribes. Your mileage may vary.)
Hyundai’s stagnant sales volume seems odd, in view of their appealing products and the growing popularity of fuel/space efficient vehicles.
I can think of two possible reasons: First, they may have concentrated production on “loaded” models that induce sticker shock when shoppers come in looking for that $19,000 Sonata in the ads. Second, having too few dealers which leaves many sizable communities without a nearby Hyundai outlet and allows existing dealers to wring higher prices from buyers. Recently I visited a big Hyundai store in Albuquerque. There was surprisingly few new vehicles on the lot, and the ones they had were all top-of-the-line models that also carried a sticker showing a $1,500 additional dealer markup.
It’s a further sign of Detroit’s weakness when they have to resort to incentives to move metal while Honda, Toyota and Hyundai dealers are padding MSRP by another $1,000 to $1,500 profit.
Frank,
Since when do 2008s (new models) drive the truck market at this time of year? Just how many more 2008 Silverados and Rams are being sold than 2008 F150s? The numbers you report don’t break down the model year sales.
pdub The numbers you report don’t break down the model year sales. Neither do the numbers I'm reporting from. It's strictly new units of a given model sold during the month, whether they're '06's, '07's or '08's. Likewise, when I'm looking at incentives I look across the entire range of national incentive programs offered that month for that particular model regardless of model year.
I think our US auto market could “lose” several brands and there would be few tears.
Mercury. Why does it exist? It should follow it’s Canadian cousins (Monarch and Meteor) and the Edsel into oblivion, already! There is ONE solely Mercury dealer in the whole country, most others are dualled with Lincoln, and/or Ford. As for Lincoln, for goodness sake, LOSE the letters! Bring back some phenomenal names – Zephyr – for a sporty coupe and perhaps four door coupe – Continental – for a luxury car with suicide doors – and lose the SUV’s already! They are as passe’ as tail fins (or soon will be). Bring on the hybrid drivetrains – and maybe some small V12 engines? Say, 4 litres?
Buick. Most of the (US) clientele are about 192 years old, and the brand is sicker than Olds was when GM pulled life-support. It can lead a “second life” in China, who cares…
Saturn. It’s never made GM penny ONE. In plain English, IT’S A MONEY PIT. It’s just “in the way” and taking up valuable resources. Importing cars from Europe at a time when the US dollar is collapsing in value compared to the Euro (65% swing in 5 years) is absurdly stupid… almost as stupid as the prior Saturn Ion was.
Pontiac. Had John Delorean had his wish in 1970, and GM would have “down-sized” six or seven years early, they’d have lost less market share (down from 56% of the US market to 23% in a mere 25 years). Reason? Smaller cars would have appealed to Americans in the 1973 and 1979 fuel crises. Pontiac would have been at the forefront of the change, per Delorean’s plans… As for now, who needs Aussie “Pontiacs” – they’re going to do “as well” as the “GTO” fiasco – hasn’t anyone at GM got a clue? Gas is $3 a gallon, guys. Chrysler’s 300 sales are evaporating as fast as gas prices are rising, so you’re bringing in an Australian built car at a time when the US dollar is plummeting in value compared to the Australian dollar…..
Isuzu. Nothing new in the pipeline, nothing actually sold which is actually Isuzu. Lay it to rest, already, it’s been dead for years and it’s starting to stink up the place! Wow.
Saab. Rebadged Opels and GM SUV’s aren’t good enough, and there aren’t enough leftie professors to carry the brand if they go back to Swedish engineering.
Mitsubishi. Perhaps in lieu of it dying, Mitsu and Suzuki could merge, since both are pretty weak, but have some strong points each. Pick one brand worldwide and go with it. Suzuki?
Hummer. Good gawd, these things are “SO 1999”. Dump it, already. It’s an embarrassment.
Scion. Even Toyota screws up now and again. The whole idea was good – then the cars got “up-sized” and the engines got “up-sized” (just in time for $3 per gallon gas). So, just to prove the point that even the Japanese car guys can sometimes shoot themselves right in the foot, Scion sales are down, down, down. They’ve left their clientele with nothing to buy… At least Toyota won’t have to pay off dealers (no dedicated Scion dealers) to kill it off.
Nissan. I know, that’s a shocker. But, truth be told, their cars are only somewhat better than average – penny pinching Ghosn might have saved the company in the same way that George Romney saved American Motors in the 1950’s – but was Nissan a company worth saving? The quality and reliability of the cars is sub-Hyundai, so what’s the point of paying extra money for a Japanese car of lower quality than a Hyundai? C’mon, Nissan, get your “stuff” together and this time, don’t “forget where you put it”. Or, just get outa town.
Suzuki. Without a really strong partnership (as mentioned above), they’re only a bit-player in every market except Japan, and Japan’s car market is slowly evaporating, kind of like a snowball in March.
Sorry, I’ll continue with my list now – if I may.
Mercedes-Benz. Crap quality, overpriced cars and a tarnished image, and no improvement in sight. Arrogant idiots running the company (why buy Chrysler up then dump it, losing God only knows how much money in a few years? Why keep “SMART” car going when it’s never made a single Pfennig? Why dump Mitsubishi when they were in need, couldn’t you idiots see how the US side of the biz saved your bacon – then you bailed out the US side for awhile – losing Mitsubishi and Chrysler leaves you with a 1-legged stool to sit on). If you want to see a successful company in this niche, look at BMW.
GMC. Why? Dump it.
Chrysler or Dodge. Let’s be realistic. Pick one. Bet your money on it. Two are not needed in the marketplace any more, it’s only badge-engineering. I suppose since there are Dodge trucks, Dodge “wins”.
50merc-
speaking of Hyundai, I’d very much like to see a review of the Veracruz. In no way am I going to ever buy it (well… I might if the used market is right and my family grows in size…) but it looks like a great auto.
who’d have thought that 15 years ago?
I gotta wonder to what extent the RAV4 is cannibalizing Highlander sales.
Front-wheel-drive? Yup. Same 3.5L V6? Ayup.
The RAV4 is cheaper and can still be had with the 4-cylinder to boot.
I also think it looks a bit like the old Highlander, whose looks I like better than the new one.
Either the RAV4 needs to shrink back to its original size, or the Highlander needs to leave Toyota’s lineup – not a bad move since it would make its Lexus RX cousins more exclusive.
Frank, are the Scion sales breakdowns readily available (without subscription)? I have heard about xB sales being off, and large inventory stored at the port in Prtland.
(Never mind, I found it)
As for the Highlander, you’re all jumping to conclusions. The new Highlander has only been on sale for 2 months. Production is still ramping up. Let’s see what happens with Highlander sales in the next few months.
I love our ’03 Highlander 4 cyl. – light, tossable, easy on gas, loads of room. Nice looking in a sutble way (but too many on the road….).
The new model is hideous looking. I can get nearly as much room in the RAV4 and better gas mileage (although with the fugly tire hanging off the back. Better go with the CR-V….).
The original Scion Xb was cute but tinny. The new one feels more substantial, the price being vehicle weight and mpg. I’ll go with safety first.
Comparing June through September, xB sales are down 18.4%, compared to ’06. Looks like the gen2 xB is stumbling.
“Looks like the gen2 xB is stumbling.”
Toyota’s designers really are not the best or the brightest in the business. The recent Camry is pug-ugly and making the xB porkier was just dumb.
They should study Ford’s recent history. The 1996 Taurus redesign killed off a great brand and turned it into rental fodder in no time flat. From best seller to also-ran in a few years. Boy did those Taurus designers love their ovals! What a disaster. Unfortunately it happened right when the Explorer took off, so not many people noticed.
chanman, The Highlander no longer has a 4 cyl so those sales are given up to the Rav 4. Other than that, the new Highlander is quite a bit bigger than the Rav 4 so very little cannibilization should occur.
As for Scion, again conventional logic can’t be used since Toyota is intentionally limiting production to retain the exclusivity and “nicheness” of the brand. Scion sales being down may not mean demand is down, but simply that production is being limited. We need to look at days-on-the-lot data for Scion models.
MrGlenn126,
I agree with a lot of your analyses of certain brands. I never had much respect for Nissan (been riding on the cottails of Toyota and Honda) and my respect went downhill after Mr Carlos “I’m just a glorified account” Ghosn went at the helm and drove the company further down. In fact, in the UK theyve totally lost the plot with their line up. So obesessed about making money, nearly all of their cars are CUV’s or SUV’s, nothing else! In the UK, you can buy:
Micra (Small city car)
Note(Small CUV)
Qashiqai (big CUV)
Murano (Small SUV)
X-Trail (Medium SUV)
Pathfinder (Large SUV)
350Z (terrible sports car)
No mid range hatchback or family sedan at all!
But Mitsubishi? They’re postings record gains in the US market, almost 22% every month. I can’t see them leaving for a very long time. In fact, Mazda have a similar market share to Mitsubishi but I could see getting shoved out of the US market.
Mercedes-Benz is an interesting one. Realistically, I can’t see it happening anytime soon, but what you say DOES make sense. Most people I know would rather buy a Lexus or Audi over a Mercedes-Benz. So, if it carries on at this rate, MB will be good approximately, what?
Johnson:
Scion sales being down may not mean demand is down, but simply that production is being limited. We need to look at days-on-the-lot data for Scion models.
I tried to find inventory information for Scion models, but Toyota apparently doesn’t report info on individual models. They also roll Scion’s total up with Toyota. I’ll keep looking to see if I can find anything from another source.
Glen126
Buick. Most of the (US) clientele are about 192 years old, and the brand is sicker than Olds was when GM pulled life-support. It can lead a “second life” in China, who cares…
While I suspect that the overwhelming majority of the members of this forum are in their 20’s – 30’s, a significant portion of the US population are boomers with their attendant bad backs, arthritis, etc. Buick has still managed to sell over 140,000 vehicles so far this year that will generally haul their passengers around in reliable, reasonably luxurious comfort. Not everybody wants or is willing to settle for a small, FE car and many of us are unwilling to spend the money for a Lexus.
Additionally, I suspect that most Americans have already adjusted to $3/gallon gasoline and while the cost of fuel is definitely a factor in any buying decision, many people are happy to get reasonable mileage and recognize that there are always tradeoffs.
Wonder if any of those nitwits who kept claiming the Prius was a niche car are going to take their lumps like men.
rushmore9 “speaking of Hyundai, I’d very much like to see a review of the Veracruz. In no way am I going to ever buy it (well… I might if the used market is right and my family grows in size…) but it looks like a great auto.”
That’s the point, Hyundai sales have been flat year-on-year even with a completely turned line. Massive incentives and increases to rental fleets have also propped un their sales (sound familiar).
At the end of the day—-who cares how far Hyundai have come in 15 years….they have given the US the equivalent of a “full monty” product makeover and have gained little to no traction.
In the interest of fairness, I’ll be the first one to say the same thing about Saturn one year from now if they haven’t turned the tide with their full line makeover.
“I’ll be the first one to say the same thing about Saturn one year from now if they haven’t turned the tide with their full line makeover.”
I don’t think that Saturn has enough remaining mindshare to really drive sales increases. Their first generation enthusiasts were driven away by a long of tooth product line followed by a horrible makeover (Ion) and then followed by a complete submersion into the Borg. Sticking Saturn with a version of the horrible GM minivan for a few years probably didn’t help either.
Now Saturn has a few competitive vehicles, but with their avoidance of the incentive marketing game and the fact that more and more of their target market have already become loyal Toyota or Honda customers they aren’t going to get enough consideration to move the needle. Oddly enough, if the new Saturns are as good as some say, the thing to do would be to seed them into the rental fleets in order to expose potential customers to the brand. The vast majority of the US car buying public doesn’t give Saturn a thought. They don’t have the history or loyalty factors of a Chevrolet or Ford and they lack the modern attention Honda and Toyota get. No history, no modern buzz and GM-like resale values. The thrill of paying full sticker for a new GM car has pretty much worn off!
It isn’t really “all about the product” as so many people like to say. Great product is the ante to get into the game, but having the ante doesn’t make an automatic winner.
Frank Williams:
I tried to find inventory information for Scion models, but Toyota apparently doesn’t report info on individual models. They also roll Scion’s total up with Toyota. I’ll keep looking to see if I can find anything from another source.
Every once in a while an industry source like Automotive News publishes some inventory and days-on-the-lot data. Previously in past data, Scion models often had low inventory levels, which adds to the idea that Toyota is tightly limiting production in order to keep Scion a niche brand.