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Dismal April motivates Toyota to increase production and incentives

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Old 05-04-09, 10:12 AM
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Default Dismal April motivates Toyota to increase production and incentives

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/05/04/d...n-and-incenti/

With April's sales volume down over 41% and Ford pushing it aside in the numbers race, the Toyota division is motivated to move units in May. At the request of dealers, the automaker is boosting production of its best-selling Toyota Camry and popular RAV4 SUV. In addition, a new ad campaign, called "Perfect Timing," started on Friday. It is an attempt to boost sales on vehicles using reduced interest rates, more consumer cash and a focus on low payment leases. The campaign caters to regional needs with aggressive leases in the East, and zero-percent interest rates in the West and Midwest. Bob Carter, Toyota division general manager, told Automotive News that "there will be an enhanced package of incentives compared with what Toyota currently offers." Carter didn't elaborate, so it seems you'll just have to visit a showroom to get the details. Regardless, it appears that Toyota is willing to make a deal like never before.
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Old 05-04-09, 10:52 AM
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We shall see. I also wonder if there is an "anti-import" backlash going on and people are trying to buy American. Ford really has a great lineup right now and they aren't in the crapper like GM/Chrysler.
 
Old 05-04-09, 11:11 AM
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I still think the economy is in the crapper and it's really tough to do new car sales, but not impossible. I do know that neighbors/friends who have bought new, did so because their current vehicle was virtually dead and they wanted something cheap, but new, and were able to get a good deal instead of paying for repairs, continued low gas mileage.

Apart from vehicles, I know people doing the same thing with items such as tvs or computers. My across from me had her tv and computer go a day apart and the repairs would have been high, and was able to score some deals there in getting new ones, but otherwise she wouldn't have bought anything new.

Down here in showrooms it is like a ghost town on Saturdays when I browse.
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Old 05-04-09, 11:13 AM
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I should head to my Toyota dealer & grab a Veza for 20k.
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Old 05-04-09, 03:18 PM
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This is bad news for Toyota fans and the future in my opinion. Toyota needs to make decision and either downsize (reduce manufacturing capacity) or cut prices and trying to move inventory.

Toyota's goal is to not lose capacity so when the economy does inprove, Toyota will have the manufacturing capability.
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Old 05-04-09, 03:39 PM
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Originally Posted by DASHOCKER
I should head to my Toyota dealer & grab a Veza for 20k.
WTH is a Veza?
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Old 05-04-09, 05:47 PM
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Originally Posted by pagemaster
This is bad news for Toyota fans and the future in my opinion. Toyota needs to make decision and either downsize (reduce manufacturing capacity) or cut prices and trying to move inventory.

Toyota's goal is to not lose capacity so when the economy does inprove, Toyota will have the manufacturing capability.
you didnt hear? Toyota is down to 58 days of inventory and few models are in low inventory so 3rd shifts have been restarted :-).

As to the April, Edmunds analyst said it was mostly due to lower incentives in USA compared to other brands.
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Old 05-04-09, 08:56 PM
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They need to increase incentives . They have been alittle tighter than most companies. Especially when it comes to Lexus
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Old 05-04-09, 09:04 PM
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Toyota and Honda are lowerst in incentives, Caddy and Infiniti are highest.


http://studio-5.financialcontent.com...ChannelID=3191

Edmunds.com Reports True Cost of Incentives: High Incentives Spending May Be Hurting Some More than Helping
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Published: 05/01/09 01:12 PM EDT
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Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information, estimated today that the average automotive manufacturer incentive in the U.S. was $3,031 per vehicle sold in April 2009, down $134, or 4.2 percent, from March 2009, and up $680, or 28.9 percent, from April 2008.

"This month’s sales reports may prove that there is a point of diminishing returns for incentives spending," stated Jesse Toprak, Executive Director of Industry Analysis for Edmunds.com. “For some automakers, this month’s high incentives diluted brand image and hurt residual values while delivering only a negligible lift in sales.”
True Cost of Incentives for the Top Seven Automakers
Automaker April 2009 March 2009 April 2008
Chrysler Group (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep) $4,288 $4,889 $3,795
Ford (Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo) $3,636 $3,673 $2,989

General Motors (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet,
GMC, Hummer, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn)
$4,063 $4,772* $3,132
Honda (Acura, Honda) $1,439* $1,334 $1,405
Hyundai (Hyundai, Kia) $3,591* $3,504 $2,156
Nissan (Infiniti, Nissan) $2,779* $2,234 $1,796
Toyota (Lexus, Scion, Toyota) $1,648 $1,565 $840
Industry Average $3,031 $3,165* $2,351

* Denotes a record

According to Edmunds.com, combined incentives spending for domestic manufacturers averaged $3,959 per vehicle sold in April 2009, down from $4,465 in March 2009. From March 2009 to April 2009, European automakers increased incentives spending by $26 to $3,410 per vehicle sold; Japanese automakers increased incentives spending by $132 to $1,740 per vehicle sold; and Korean automakers increased incentives spending by $87 to $3,591 per vehicle sold.

In April 2009, the industry's aggregate incentive spending is estimated to have totaled approximately $2.6 billion, down 3.8 percent from March 2009. Chrysler, Ford and General Motors spent an aggregate of $1.5 billion, or 59.5 percent of the total; Japanese manufacturers spent $575 million, or 22.1 percent; European manufacturers spent $257 million, or 9.9 percent; and Korean manufacturers spent $221 million, or 8.5 percent.

"Despite earning little return in the way of higher sales on their incentive investments, automakers seem to be playing a game of chicken – all are waiting for the other guy to drop back first,” commented Edmunds' AutoObserver.com Senior Editor Michelle Krebs. "Automakers appear to fear the bottom falling out completely if they back down on incentives.”

Among vehicle segments, premium sport cars had the highest average incentives, $6,540 per vehicle sold, followed by large SUVs at $4,797. Subcompact cars had the lowest average incentives per vehicle sold, $1060, followed by compact cars at $1,893. Analysis of incentives expenditures as a percentage of average sticker price for each segment shows large car averaged the highest, 14.0 percent, followed by large trucks at 13.0 percent of sticker price. Premium luxury cars averaged the lowest with 4.5 percent and subcompact cars followed with 6.7 percent of sticker price.

Comparing all brands, in April Scion spent the least, $160 per vehicle sold, followed by Subaru at $884. At the other end of the spectrum, Cadillac spent the most, $5,675 per vehicle sold, followed by Infiniti at $5,504. Relative to their vehicle prices, Kia and Mercury spent the most, 20.9 percent and 16.2 percent of sticker price, respectively; while Scion spent 0.9 and Lexus spent 3.3 percent.


Edmunds.com's monthly True Cost of IncentivesSM (TCISM) report takes into account all automakers' various U.S. incentives programs, including subvented interest rates and lease programs, as well as cash rebates to consumers and dealers. To ensure the greatest possible accuracy, Edmunds.com bases its calculations on sales volume, including the mix of vehicle makes and models for each month, as well as on the proportion of vehicles for which each type of incentive was used.

About Edmunds.com Inc. (http://www.edmunds.com/help/about/index.html)

Edmunds.com Inc. publishes four Web sites that empower, engage and educate automotive consumers, enthusiasts and insiders. Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive consumer information, launched in 1995 as the first automotive information Web site. Its most popular feature, the Edmunds.com True Market Value®, is relied upon by millions of people seeking current transaction prices for new and used vehicles. Edmunds.com was named "Best Car Research Site" by Forbes ASAP, has been selected by consumers as the "Most Useful Web Site" according to every J.D. Power and Associates New Autoshopper.com Study(SM), was ranked first in the Survey of Car-Shopping Web Sites by The Wall Street Journal and was rated "#1" in Keynote's study of third-party automotive Web sites. Inside Line launched in 2005 and is the most-read automotive enthusiast Web site. CarSpace launched in 2006 and is an automotive social networking Web site and home to the oldest and most established automotive community. AutoObserver.com launched in 2008 and provides insightful automotive industry commentary and analysis. Edmunds Inc. is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and maintains a satellite office in suburban Detroit.
 
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