April 2006 Sales Thread
05-03-06, 05:20 AM
#61
CNN $ Article
Big 3 Declines in April Sales
Detroit automakers under pressure last month; Ford sees big drop in SUV, pickup sales; Toyota, Honda gain.
May 2, 2006: 2:36 PM EDT
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Sales at Detroit's Big Three automakers tumbled in April while Japanese automakers gained, the companies said Tuesday.
GM (up $0.56 to $23.20, Research) said sales slipped 10.7 percent on an unadjusted basis for the month of April to 339,796 new cars and trucks from a year earlier. GM releases its sales figures adjusted for the daily sales rate. Because of one less sales day in April 2006, it reported only a 7.3 percent decline in sales.
Ford (up $0.02 to $6.93, Research), the No. 2 automaker, said overall sales slipped 7 percent to 262,722 compared to last year, while DaimlerChrysler (down $0.35 to $54.25, Research) reported total U.S. sales sank 6 percent to 211,365 passenger vehicles for April 2006.
Sales at the automaker's key North American unit Chrysler Group, which includes the Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge brands, fell 8 percent.
Ford's and Chrysler's results do not take into account that there was one less selling day during the month of April this year.
While Detroit automakers suffered, Japanese automakers did well.
Toyota reported an 8.5 percent jump, while Honda (up $1.29 to $36.98, Research) said its sales climbed 6.5 percent.
Auto sales tracker Edmunds.com had anticipated on an unadjusted basis GM's April sales would sink 10 percent, Ford's sales would fall 8 percent while Chrysler would dip by 3 percent.
GM said total passenger car sales were down 18 percent, and truck sales were up 2 percent, helped by sales of the GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade.
"Given that the industry came in somewhat below our initial expectations, we are pleased that our retail sales were in line with the targets established in our North America turnaround plan," Mark LaNeve, General Motors North America vice president of vehicle sales, said in a statement.
Ford (up $0.02 to $6.93, Research) said its passenger car sales climbed 8 percent last month, boosted by strength in mid-sized vehicles like the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan.
"These new, fuel-efficient cars are helping our dealers to retain owners and capture new ones," Al Giombetti, president of marketing and sales for Ford and Lincoln Mercury, said in a statement.
But the automaker blamed a 15 percent decline in light truck sales, which include SUVs, pick-up trucks and minivans, for the dip in total sales.
Ford said sales of its Ford Explorer tumbled 42 percent from a year earlier, while its F Series pickup truck, the nation's best-selling vehicle, slipped 9.3 percent.
Rising gasoline prices have dragged on U.S. automakers' SUV sales as consumers have sought more fuel-efficient vehicles.
Subaru and BMW both boasted solid increases in U.S. sales.
05-03-06, 06:37 AM
#62
Main problem Toyota will have this year is lack of capacity. They are bulding more and more plants, expanding old ones, but it is hard to keep up with 700,000 additional sales each year (which is at least 2 new factories per year). Flexible plants with ability to produce 7 models at same line help, but not when all of your models are in high demand.
Prius now has 4 day supply in April.
Here in Europe we are out of Rav4's until September, factory does not accept new orders since it can not fulfill old ones until then. Hilux (pickup) has 3x more demand than supply. And we sell all Yaris's we get, despite plant expansion in Japan. Hopefully shortages will stop by December when new Corolla comes in, and causes another shortage :-).
I simply cant see Toyota growing in Europe and USA at the same pace until they add extra capacity, which is coming but still is not enough for 2008/2009. Subbie plant will definetly help but thats peanuts.
Prius now has 4 day supply in April.
Here in Europe we are out of Rav4's until September, factory does not accept new orders since it can not fulfill old ones until then. Hilux (pickup) has 3x more demand than supply. And we sell all Yaris's we get, despite plant expansion in Japan. Hopefully shortages will stop by December when new Corolla comes in, and causes another shortage :-).
I simply cant see Toyota growing in Europe and USA at the same pace until they add extra capacity, which is coming but still is not enough for 2008/2009. Subbie plant will definetly help but thats peanuts.
05-03-06, 06:45 AM
#63
Speaks French in Russian
Top-20 Selling Vehicles
Following is a list of the top-20 selling vehicles, ranked by total units.
RANK VEHICLE 2006 2005 '05 RANK %Chng
1 Ford F-Series pickup 264,550 260,775 1 +1.4
2 Chevy Silverado-C/K pickup 203,062 214,396 2 -5.3
3 Toyota Camry 133,978 138,939 3 -3.6
4 Dodge Ram pickup 121,200 125,043 4 -3.1
5 Toyota Corolla / Matrix 118,442 115,994 5 +2.1
6 Honda Civic 109,738 90,812 7 +20.8
7 Honda Accord 108,562 112,606 6 -3.6
8 Chevrolet Impala 90,312 87,770 8 +2.9
9 Dodge Caravan 81,191 81,696 11 -0.6
10 Nissan Altima 80,804 84,337 10 -4.2
11 Chevrolet Cobalt 71,776 51,888 24 +38.3
12 Ford Taurus 66,501 72,377 12 -8.1
13 GMC Sierra pickup 63,201 67,955 13 -7.0
14 Chevrolet Malibu 61,503 62,604 17 -1.8
15 Ford Explorer 60,488 86,386 9 -30.0
16 Ford Focus 60,168 64,916 16 -7.3
17 Ford Escape 58,279 59,179 20 -1.5
18 Chevrolet Tahoe 58,242 42,988 34 +35.5
19 Ford Econoline 58,042 58,861 21 -1.4
20 Ford Mustang 56,560 61,820 18 -8.5
RANK VEHICLE 2006 2005 '05 RANK %Chng
1 Ford F-Series pickup 264,550 260,775 1 +1.4
2 Chevy Silverado-C/K pickup 203,062 214,396 2 -5.3
3 Toyota Camry 133,978 138,939 3 -3.6
4 Dodge Ram pickup 121,200 125,043 4 -3.1
5 Toyota Corolla / Matrix 118,442 115,994 5 +2.1
6 Honda Civic 109,738 90,812 7 +20.8
7 Honda Accord 108,562 112,606 6 -3.6
8 Chevrolet Impala 90,312 87,770 8 +2.9
9 Dodge Caravan 81,191 81,696 11 -0.6
10 Nissan Altima 80,804 84,337 10 -4.2
11 Chevrolet Cobalt 71,776 51,888 24 +38.3
12 Ford Taurus 66,501 72,377 12 -8.1
13 GMC Sierra pickup 63,201 67,955 13 -7.0
14 Chevrolet Malibu 61,503 62,604 17 -1.8
15 Ford Explorer 60,488 86,386 9 -30.0
16 Ford Focus 60,168 64,916 16 -7.3
17 Ford Escape 58,279 59,179 20 -1.5
18 Chevrolet Tahoe 58,242 42,988 34 +35.5
19 Ford Econoline 58,042 58,861 21 -1.4
20 Ford Mustang 56,560 61,820 18 -8.5
05-03-06, 07:07 AM
#64
Speaks French in Russian
Midsize Sedans
Entry level Luxury
April 2006
1.Toyota Camry - 40,203
2.Honda Accord - 31,608
3.Chevrolet Impala - 25,879
4.Nissan Altima - 20,176
5.Hyundai Sonata - 15,617
6.Chevrolet Malibu - 14,721
7.Ford Fusion - 12,613
8.Pontiac G6 - 9,296
9.Mazda 6 - 5,518
10.Mercury Milan - 3,557
11.Volkswagen Passat - 3,466
12.Mitsubishi Galant- 3,049
April 2005
1.Camry - 38,981
2.Accord - 29,653
3.Impala - 24,071
4.Altima - 23,790
5.Sonata - 17,487
6.Malibu - 13,716
7.G6 - 11,769
8.Fusion - 10,703
9.Mazda6 - 7,215
10.Passat- 4,727
11.Milan - 3,236
12.Galant - 2,512
1.Toyota Camry - 40,203
2.Honda Accord - 31,608
3.Chevrolet Impala - 25,879
4.Nissan Altima - 20,176
5.Hyundai Sonata - 15,617
6.Chevrolet Malibu - 14,721
7.Ford Fusion - 12,613
8.Pontiac G6 - 9,296
9.Mazda 6 - 5,518
10.Mercury Milan - 3,557
11.Volkswagen Passat - 3,466
12.Mitsubishi Galant- 3,049
April 2005
1.Camry - 38,981
2.Accord - 29,653
3.Impala - 24,071
4.Altima - 23,790
5.Sonata - 17,487
6.Malibu - 13,716
7.G6 - 11,769
8.Fusion - 10,703
9.Mazda6 - 7,215
10.Passat- 4,727
11.Milan - 3,236
12.Galant - 2,512
April 2006 Sales
BMW 3 Series - 11,151
Acura TL - 7,975
Lexus IS - 4,715
Infiniti G35 - 4,652
Cadilac CTS - 4,612
Lexus ES - 4,603
Mercedes C Class - 4,037
Acura TSX - 3,911
Audi A4 - 3,623
Lincoln Zephyr - 3,378
Saab 9-3 - 2,144
Volvo S40 - 2,109
Volvo S60 - 1,892
Lincoln LS - 1,218
Audi A3 - 746
March 2006 Sales
BMW 3 Series - 10,093
Acura TL - 6,767
Infiniti G35 - 5,829
Cadillac CTS - 5,386
Lexus IS - 5,210
Lexus ES - 4,231
Mercedes C Class - 3,906
Audi A4 - 3,885
Lincoln Zephyr - 3,218
Volvo S60 - 2,341
Jaguar X-Type - 407
BMW 3 Series - 11,151
Acura TL - 7,975
Lexus IS - 4,715
Infiniti G35 - 4,652
Cadilac CTS - 4,612
Lexus ES - 4,603
Mercedes C Class - 4,037
Acura TSX - 3,911
Audi A4 - 3,623
Lincoln Zephyr - 3,378
Saab 9-3 - 2,144
Volvo S40 - 2,109
Volvo S60 - 1,892
Lincoln LS - 1,218
Audi A3 - 746
March 2006 Sales
BMW 3 Series - 10,093
Acura TL - 6,767
Infiniti G35 - 5,829
Cadillac CTS - 5,386
Lexus IS - 5,210
Lexus ES - 4,231
Mercedes C Class - 3,906
Audi A4 - 3,885
Lincoln Zephyr - 3,218
Volvo S60 - 2,341
Jaguar X-Type - 407
05-03-06, 07:28 AM
#65
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Originally Posted by 1SICKLEX
Infiniiti is getting drilled. Sales are down, the QX is new, the FX is revised, new G35s are around the corner. The GT-R will be a Nissan, M sales are strong.
Just not good for their already restless dealers. coming.
Just not good for their already restless dealers. coming.
05-03-06, 07:56 AM
#66
Originally Posted by 1SICKLEX
Wow, Lexus had a tough month. Seems everything is down except the IS. But the new ES 350 is here, RX 350 hopefully will pick up, GS 450h is here (limited quantaties) and we know the GS/LS are coming this fall.
Should be enough for them to keep the sales titles.
But man, a ROUGH APRIL.
Should be enough for them to keep the sales titles.
But man, a ROUGH APRIL.
05-03-06, 02:58 PM
#67
Originally Posted by genearch
No, that's not what I'm saying at all. You have a tendency to read into things that aren't there.
I'm saying that everybody is making excuses for Lexus when there is no reason to... If Lexus was really serious about outselling the 3 series, they would have done something about it three years ago. They have a three vehicle approach to reach that entire segment, which clearly is not enough to own that segment.
And.. yes, I'm tired of hearing how "The new improved Lexus xxx is coming and Lexus will show them how it's done" In sales, you cannot sell from an empty wagon. There are no acceptable excuses. Sales will rise and drop from all manufacturers. The "new" GS has been out over a year now and while I personally believe it offers a better value over the M45, there is NO way to rationalize why the M outselling is the GS. Lexus dropped the ball here. Lexus has an actual pricing issue, or a perceived value issue. Either way, it's not cutting it.
Don't be fooled thinking that people are sitting on the sidelines keeping their checkbooks warm while Lexus prepares the GS350/460. They will make no measurable impact on this section of the market.
I agree with other posters in this thread... the IS350 and ES350 will grab GS market share.
Imagine the Lexus car line in a product pyramid.
LS & SC430
GS4xx
GS3xx/ES3XX/IS350
IS250
The GS 4xx buyer will be squeezed down market to tier 3 and the GS350 will have to compete with the ES for the "lux" buyer and IS for the "sporty sedan" buyer. If those customers stick with Lexus, Lexus wins.. what has been happening is that they have been choosing the M45 which wedges between the GS4xx and the GS3xx.
The coupe is in it's own segment and is not a huge seller for Lexus or other manufacturers. (with the slight exception of the Infiniti G35)
I'm saying that everybody is making excuses for Lexus when there is no reason to... If Lexus was really serious about outselling the 3 series, they would have done something about it three years ago. They have a three vehicle approach to reach that entire segment, which clearly is not enough to own that segment.
And.. yes, I'm tired of hearing how "The new improved Lexus xxx is coming and Lexus will show them how it's done" In sales, you cannot sell from an empty wagon. There are no acceptable excuses. Sales will rise and drop from all manufacturers. The "new" GS has been out over a year now and while I personally believe it offers a better value over the M45, there is NO way to rationalize why the M outselling is the GS. Lexus dropped the ball here. Lexus has an actual pricing issue, or a perceived value issue. Either way, it's not cutting it.
Don't be fooled thinking that people are sitting on the sidelines keeping their checkbooks warm while Lexus prepares the GS350/460. They will make no measurable impact on this section of the market.
I agree with other posters in this thread... the IS350 and ES350 will grab GS market share.
Imagine the Lexus car line in a product pyramid.
LS & SC430
GS4xx
GS3xx/ES3XX/IS350
IS250
The GS 4xx buyer will be squeezed down market to tier 3 and the GS350 will have to compete with the ES for the "lux" buyer and IS for the "sporty sedan" buyer. If those customers stick with Lexus, Lexus wins.. what has been happening is that they have been choosing the M45 which wedges between the GS4xx and the GS3xx.
The coupe is in it's own segment and is not a huge seller for Lexus or other manufacturers. (with the slight exception of the Infiniti G35)
Lexus has 2 cars in entry luxury ( 3 series segment), while 3 series has 11 different versions of itself (or similar). And yes, their strategy is fine - in IS and ES shouldnt have problems with outselling 3 series this year.
Whole GS segment has less sales - 5 series suffered nasty 30-35% drop from last year, despite 550i introduction recently. I am not sure how much GS Lexus wants to produce without having to incentivise sales like BMW.
Another thing is that I dont know how much capacity Lexus/Toyota have... I really dont think they have ability to add a lot of production, and with ES350 coming their factories will be strained...
05-03-06, 04:55 PM
#69
Originally Posted by genearch
Boy oh boy.. you folks get your panties in a bunch pretty easily. Where in this thread did I make it about BMW vs. Lexus...
I did reply to one post that was making excuses about the IS vs 3 series as pertained to the 3 series offering multiple models. I'll stand by that.. Lexus had a long period to come out with the new IS350.. IMHO, they should have had more variations from the get go.
I did reply to one post that was making excuses about the IS vs 3 series as pertained to the 3 series offering multiple models. I'll stand by that.. Lexus had a long period to come out with the new IS350.. IMHO, they should have had more variations from the get go.
05-03-06, 05:25 PM
#70
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Originally Posted by spwolf
You think IS is doing bad? Thats funny :-). IS is doing awesome. Why in the world would any make excuses for IS? It is one of the greatest sucesses of Lexus ever.
Compared to what the IS was, the new IS is a total hit, its not even close. Lets not forget, the 3 has come a LONG way, since the 2002 of the early 70s. THat is over 30 years of experience in this segment.
Lexus is learning. The 1IS to 2IS jump is similar to the 1GS to 2GS jump. No the 2GS wasn't the sales champ but it helped Lexus get a nice piece of the pie, which continues with the 3GS.
The 3 more than performance, has the IMAGE, so many want at a fair price and IMO, nothign wrong with that.
Clearly with the 3 selling better than ever and the IS selling better than ever, there is more than enough room for both cars.
05-03-06, 06:44 PM
#71
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Originally Posted by spwolf
Also, nobody noticed how 5 series sales dropped 30%-35% over last year? :-). That whole section of the market is shrinking, mostly due to good sales of 3, IS and TL (and ES to come), as well as S class.
Edit - I will also go on record as saying the IS sales will decrease as the year goes on. The car is HOT right now, but that market is limited and with only two models......
Also for those of you who could not read Gene's post, he pointed out that BMW is sellling 11,000 3-series to the 4,500 ISs BECAUSE THERE ARE MORE MODELS OF THE 3-SERIES! His point was simply that Lexus needs/should have come out with more variations of the IS if they wanted to capture serious market share.
Finally, I will also go on record as saying that BMW will not outsell Lexus as long as people continue to purchase 10,000 plus RXs per year. Take away that model and BMW crushes Lexus - but oh boy does it sell.
Last edited by doug_999; 05-03-06 at 06:56 PM.
05-03-06, 09:35 PM
#74
Lexus Test Driver
Originally Posted by 1SICKLEX
1. Lexus is doing well doing things their way. They have the IS and ES, and will hit their 17% market share target. BMW is doing BMW. Lexus is not that company to sell 6 speed manuals and 20 different versions of the same car. Now of course, people that want high powered manuals, will skip Lexus and Lexus will miss out on what, 500 buyers a month?
2.There in no doubt the M35/45 is a very good car and clearly a homerun for Nissan. Again though, Lexus is not the same company it was, selling a GS 300 since what 1993-2005 with the same engine. They have stated, they will continue to change and offer more powerpants. So when the GS is revamped (like the E is now 350 and 550 and the 5 has a new 550) with the 350 and 460, Nissan in their short sightedness, will have even older tech than they have now.
3. I disagree. People that want a GS want a GS. Even with the IS 350 more powerful than the 430 and 300 and cheaper, 2300 people bought a GS. Different strokes for different folks.
2.There in no doubt the M35/45 is a very good car and clearly a homerun for Nissan. Again though, Lexus is not the same company it was, selling a GS 300 since what 1993-2005 with the same engine. They have stated, they will continue to change and offer more powerpants. So when the GS is revamped (like the E is now 350 and 550 and the 5 has a new 550) with the 350 and 460, Nissan in their short sightedness, will have even older tech than they have now.
3. I disagree. People that want a GS want a GS. Even with the IS 350 more powerful than the 430 and 300 and cheaper, 2300 people bought a GS. Different strokes for different folks.
Lexus def dropped the ball. They must start to offer a SPORT package on their so called sport sedan. Look at the options the M35/45 has like sport package, 19in rims, dvd video ent. system, manual trans., etc.............Lexus offers none of these for the GS.
