Chevy Volt retail stock hits 1,361 units

General Motors execs say production of the Chevrolet Volt will not hit a level capable of satisfying demand until the second-quarter of 2012. Despite dismal August sales of only 302 units, GM insists it's not a lack of demand that's holding the Volt back.

While The General continues to blame the Volt's lack of sales on limited availability – thanks in part to a recent four-week shutdown at the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly – data compiled by Ward's Auto shows the supply of Volts now stands at 1,361 units, up from the 226 reported at the end of July. GM says that some 700 to 800 of the 1,361 plug-in hybrids are dealer demonstration units that, at least for now, can't be sold. If Ward's numbers are correct, that leaves almost a two-month supply of Volts sitting on dealer lots.

Later this year, the Volt's availability expands nationwide. Don Johnson, GM's U.S. sales chief, told Ward's Auto that since dealers must stock a demo Volt before receiving salable units, retail sales of the plug-in sedan won't increase significantly anytime soon. During a conference call on Friday, Johnson added, "It's going to take us a month or two to really fill up the retail inventory for those dealers." It looks like our prediction that the Nissan Leaf will continue its electrifying reign over the Volt for the next couple of months will hold true.

Though the company stressed to Auto Remarketing on Friday that this analysis is only based on sales data and doesn’t include leasing, Edmunds pricing manager Richard Arca noted: “Lexus increased their special APR from 2.9 percent to 1.9 percent. Basically, that saves the buyer about $0.44 for every $1,000 financed for a 60-month term. That saves the consumer about $13.20 per month on a $30,000 loan.”

He added: “Also consider that consumers still have to qualify for the financing and I assume not all will qualify. The immediate resale value effect for the increased special APR financing should be little to none for newer used Lexus vehicles.”

Delving further into Lexus’ incentive spending during August, Edmunds noted that Lexus spent $2,667 per vehicle, a 41-percent month-over-month hike.

No other major automaker showed a heftier upswing, Edmunds noted, pointing out that BMW ($3,664 per vehicle) increased just 4 percent and Mercedes-Benz ($3,808) was actually down 9 percent.

“Unlike many of its competitors who are starting to focus on 2012 model year vehicles, Lexus is getting more aggressive about selling its 2011 models in hopes of making up some lost ground,” said Edmunds senior analyst Jessica Caldwell.

“It might be a Hail Mary on their part, but if Lexus can make up even some ground in the next four months, it will give them a little momentum when the race starts all over again next year,” she added.

Edmunds did stress, however, that Lexus’ rivals “are hardly resting.” Mercedes aims to spur conquest sales into the M-Class and E-Class vehicles through $4,000 incentives. These vehicles are also in the same segments as Lexus’ RX and EX vehicles, which Edmunds called the Japanese automaker’s “two strongest products.”



Read more: Auto Remarketing | Lexus Boosts Incentives to Fight Off Mercedes, BMW http://www.autoremarketing.com/mobil...#ixzz1XIwtjZdr