Top 10 Best-Selling Cars: October 2011
Falling consumer confidence hasn't deterred car shoppers, as pent-up demand raised October sales versus a year ago for all but one major carmaker. Chrysler, Hyundai/Kia and Nissan posted big gains, with GM, Ford and Honda growing modestly. Toyota was the sole loser, dropping 7.9 percent in sales. Pickup trucks, typically strong in the fall, saw continued gains, but family sedans made a comeback, taking three of October's top five slots — something not seen since May.
Detroit pickups took the top two spots, with GM's Chevrolet Silverado and Ford’s F-Series posting some sales gains. The F-Series stayed atop the sales pile this month, comfortably outselling the No. 2 Chevrolet Silverado. Six-cylinder engines account for more than half of all F-150s sold, Ford sales chief Ken Czubay said in a conference call. It gives shoppers of the soon-to-be-discontinued Ranger a truck with similar gas mileage, he said.
Despite the 2012 redesign hitting dealerships last month, Toyota's popular Camry fell 11.9 percent — dethroned for the moment by the Honda Accord, down 1.1 percent. Accord inventory is only about half of what it was in October 2010, according to Automotive News.
The Ford Escape jumped 30.6 percent in sales despite lower dealer stocks and an aging design. Cash incentives on the Escape are high, amounting to $3,000 in some areas right now.
GM remained America's top-selling automaker last month. Ford came in second, with sales up 6.2 percent, buoyed by a 12.6 percent bump in the Ford brand itself. The automaker performed near analysts' expectations, which Bloomberg averaged to 6.6 percent.
Toyota sales fell 7.9 percent versus a year ago, leaving the automaker in third place. Analysts had expected a slightly greater drop of close to 10 percent. Honda fell 0.5 percent, matching analysts' expectations
In fourth place, Chrysler moved up 27 percent versus a year ago, matching analysts' expectations for the month, thanks to its revamped cars: the midsize Chrysler 200 and Dodge Avenger sedans, which increased 257 percent over their predecessors. Hyundai/Kia (up 22 percent) and Nissan/Infiniti (up 18 percent) round out October's top seven carmakers.
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I have yet to see new Camry on the road. Also, I may be seen new Optima 10 times.
OK, you're talking about a DSR basis for Honda and Toyota and a total volume percentage for Chrysler, Nissan and H-K. On a total volume basis, Toyota is down 7.86 and Honda dropped .48%.
On a DSR basis, Chrysler is up 31.93 and Nissan is up 22.56%. Hyundai-Kia was up about 27% on a DSR basis.
strong performance by Accord. I think its safe to say we can put the supply excuses away for good.
I have seen a few Camrys and they look nice in person. SE v6 is real nice.
On Honda, troubles NOT over yet for supply of cars.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Honda-keep-Thai-factory-shut-rc-2859921585.html
Well they will face another slow down but their inventories are better than they have been. VW had a lower supply than Toyota or Honda and posted a 40% sales increase so poor sales performance isnt always attributable to dealer stock. There are many factors at work. Toyota is preparing to launch a major incentive based sales drive so they must be confident their supplies are strong. Toyota and Honda have relatively old lineups and Hyundai/Kia and VW are taking advantage of that. Toyota may be able to reverse their fortunes with the new camry but I dont see Honda showing any major improvement for a while.
Derrick G,
Thanks for the tip. We corrected the figures in the piece for Toyota and Honda, which reported DSR rates. Honda's sales were down slightly for the month, and Toyota dropped 7.9 percent instead of the earlier 4.3 percent. Note that the graphic remains the same.
Kelsey
Kelsey,
To be fair, I should point out that Toyota and Honda typically put the DSR in their pressers while most everyone else uses volume, so it's easy to make that mistake.
So which is it? The first paragraph says Honda grew modestly and then later on it says Honda saw a 0.5% decline.
I saw my first new Camry today if you can call it new. At a glance it can easily be mistaken for the old one.
Nissan Altima sales have been very impressive, as has Nissan's YTD, yet all you guys post are pictures of an Accord or Camry, and Nissan is a quick mention, despite the impressive number you post. Why do you hate Nissan?