Toyota Motor Sales Continued to lead the import brands sales race in the US for April, posting record sales of 147,334 vehicles, an increase of 0.3 percent on the same month a year ago.
“Consumers continue to tread lightly as economic growth rolls along at a steady but slow pace,” said TMS executive vice president and COO Jim Press.
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Redesigned Camry and Corolla passenger cars and strong showings for the Highlander SUV and Tundra pickup truck boosted Toyota to record sales of 127,317, an increase of 5,063 units over last year.
The Lexus division, whose redesigned ES300 posted a 75.6 percent increase in volume to 6,035 units, enjoyed its best-ever April with sales of 20,017 vehicles, an increase of 2.2 percent.
Honda increased total sales 1.1 percent to post an April record of 101,847 vehicles.
Acura sales of 14,203 vehicles showed a 6.4 percent gain while Honda was up 0.3 percent compared to last April to 87,644.
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By GlobalDataHonda’s light truck sales rose 15.5 percent, to 29,279 vehicles with the popular Odyssey minivan increasing 20.8 percent to 13,052 vehicles while the redesigned CR-V SUV’s sales of 12,341 were up 18.6 percent over April 2001.
The novelty of Honda’s Insight seems to be wearing off for US buyers – April sales were down 60 percent to 239 cars while year to date sales are down 43 percent to 1,631.
The Acura division posted record April sales – of 14,203, a 6.4 percent increase compared to the previous record of 12,815 set a year ago.
MDX SUV sales of 3,486 were up on the 2,852 recorded in April 2001 while year-to-date volume rose 13.4 percent to 16,357. The RL sold 825 units, up 20.9 percent compared to last year.
Strong April sales of the redesigned Altima gave Nissan its seventh consecutive month of year on year increases with sales of 53,431, up 10.2 percent on year ago levels. The Altima’s 18,246 sales in April were up 68.4 percent on April 2001.
Sentra sales of 8,398 units were up five percent over last year while the Pathfinder posted 5,034 sales, a 16.3 percent increase over the same period in 2001.
Combined April sales of Nissan and Infiniti models reached 61,172 units, a 14.8 percent increase on last year.
Mitsubishi also had a good April with sales of 30,029 units, a company record and a 12.9 percent gain over sales in April 2001. Year-to-date sales are 20 percent up to 120,328 units.
“Based on the extraordinary response from consumers so far this year, we are optimistic for the remainder of 2002,” said MMSA president and COO Pierre Gagnon.
The US-built Galant sold 9,048 units for a six percent gain over April 2001 while the Eclipse Spyder’s 1,871 units were up 25 percent.
Subaru sales figures for April were almost unchanged at 14,155 units for the month. The company did not announce YTD sales but WardsAutoInfoBank data, adjusted for selling days, showed a 2.3 percent fall to 53,894.
Subaru said the Impreza increased sales 23 percent to 3,486 units in April, while Legacy April sales of 6,483 units were down six percent.
Mazda sales were down 1.3 percent in April to 21,584 while year to date volume was 75,479, down 13.9 percent.
Hyundai Motor America claimed 30,972 sales for the month, up about 19 percent over last April. Sonata, Elantra and Santa Fe volumes were up but the top XG350 and the redesigned Tibuton coupe were both down both for the month and year to date.
Hyundai affiliate Kia sold 20,366 vehicles, up on last April’s total by 27 percent. Year-to-date sales of 75,927 vehicles were up 25.7 percent.
Audi reported record April sales of 7,134, a 5.1 percent increase over April 2001 sales of 6,785. Audi’s year-to-date sales were up 3.5 percent to 27,186. Sales of the redesigned A4 were up almost 20 percent to 3,699.
Volkswagen boosted sales 3.4 percent to 30,216 for the month while year-to-date sales of 105,251 were up just one percent.
Mercedes-Benz also had a record April, increasing sales 11.7 percent to 18,476 units. Year-to-date sales of 68,694 were up eight percent on the same period last year.
The C-Class was again the US volume leader for the month (the A-class is not sold in the USA), with 5,887 sales, up 49.8 percent over April 2001. Year-to-date, the C-Class also led with 21,020 vehicles sold, an increase of 40.8 percent.
Redesigned SL roadster sales continued to soar, taking the to year-to-date total to 5,125 units, up from about 1,100 for the old model a year ago.
Porsche said U.S. retail sales for April totalled 1980 cars, a 17 percent decrease over the same period last year. Sales were however up two percent calendar year to date, a statement added.
BMW reported combined BMW/Minis sales of 23,994 cars, a 20 percent increase over the 20,012 sales a year ago.
Year-to-date volume of 78,386 was up 17.4 percent over the 66,776 vehicles sold in the first four months of 2001.
The redesigned 7 Series sold 2,100 units, a jump of nearly 40 percent over the old model on sale in April 2001.
BMW sales set a monthly record in April with sales of 22,435, a 12 percent increase. Year-to-date sales of 76,040 were up 14 percent.
The Mini line went on sale March 22 and the company reported sales of 1,477 units in the model’s first full month on sales. Year to date sales were 2,346.
