The big news in June was the giant General Motors blow-out. By combining employee pricing with a massive ad spend, GM posted its best numbers since September 1986 – its sales climbed over 41%, adjusted for daily sales rate, giving The General almost a third of the market.
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US June light vehicle sales volume jumped almost 16%. Adjusting for the extra selling day this year, Ward’s reported that sales were 11.5% higher than June 2004. Those 1.67 million cars and trucks yielded a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17.53 million light vehicles; the highest since December 2004.
GM shifted market shares dramatically, with every major player but Nissan yielding at least a little. Chrysler gave up 1.4% while Ford lost 2.5% though, as a group, Detroit automakers regained some ground. Based on reported volumes, domestic brands claimed 62% of total sales, their highest share since last September.
Though GM’s June was stellar, questions are being raised about the benefits. GM did clear a lot of its million-plus vehicle inventory, but analysts estimate the company will pay out as much as an additional $US900.00 (about £511) per vehicle.
More telling, GM is still saddled with too much capacity and vehicles that won’t move without big incentives. It will have to go back to the well and this time it won’t be alone: Chrysler and Ford will be there with similar programmes meaning Detroit’s already battered earnings could take another big hit.
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By GlobalDataChevrolet took a number of top spots for the month as it unseated Ford as bestselling brand in year-to-date (YTD) sales. The Silverado truck was the bestselling vehicle, the TrailBlazer the bestselling SUV and the Cobalt, which recently replaced the ancient Cavalier, was top American-badged car, behind Toyota’s Camry and Honda’s Accord.
Cadillac blew by Lexus to become June’s top luxury marque.
Others reported good news, as well. Hyundai established a new monthly sales record. New June benchmarks were set by Nissan, Infiniti, Subaru, Acura, Toyota, Lexus and Mercedes-Benz.
Solid Chrysler and Jeep sales offset a drop at Dodge to give Chrysler Group a 1.1% improvement. Chrysler 300 sales have softened recently, but those of the Crossfire, PT Cruiser and Pacifica have picked up. The new Grand Cherokee looks to be a winner. The Charger is off to a reasonable start and Chrysler Group easily extended its reign as the minivan leader.
Though it posted its first volume increase of 2005; DSR adjustments left Ford short of June 2004 by 2.5%. A 7.7% jump in domestic-branded cars led by a 73% explosion in Mustang sales was offset by shortfalls in trucks that account for two-thirds of Ford’s US volume. The all-important F-series pickup trails its 2004 volume by almost 6% and every SUV now shows a double-digit deficit in YTD sales.
At Ford’s Premier Automotive Group (PAG), Land Rover is up almost 11% but Jaguar is down 28% and even Volvo is slumping: it’s 4.4% off its 2004 pace for the first six months of 2005.
Looking at other European marques, BMW and Porsche are struggling with inventory problems. BMW is still ramping up the redesigned 3-series and Porsche doesn’t have enough cars to meet demand. Mercedes had a record June though it fell short of its six-month mark from 2004. Audi is holding its own but is being dragged down by parent Volkswagen, despite the latter’s recent launch of an all-new Jetta.
Bill Cawthon
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