August Auto Sales: FCA Sales Up 3%, GM and Ford Down

1385

FCA today reported U.S. sales of 196,756 units, a 3 percent increase compared with sales in August 2015. GM’s total sales in August were down about 5 percent year over year to 256,429 vehicles, and despite Ford Motor Co.’s Lincoln sales rising 7 percent in August versus a year ago and the company’s vans reaching best-ever August sales, Ford saw a decrease of 8 percent in its overall sales.

FCA’s retail sales were 150,153 units in August, while fleet sales were 46,603 units. Retail sales represented 76 percent of total sales, while fleet sales were 24 percent.

The company’s Jeep, Dodge, and Ram Truck brands each posted year-over-year sales gains in August, led by the Jeep brand’s 12 percent increase. Five of the six Jeep brand vehicles recorded sales increases in August, with the Jeep Cherokee turning in the largest percentage year-over-year gain.

The Dodge brand delivered higher year-over-year sales as the Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Journey, Dodge Grand Caravan, Dodge Durango, and Dodge Viper all recorded sales gains in August, which company officials say helped FCA reach its 5 percent increase.

The Ram Truck brand was also up with the Ram ProMaster and Ram ProMaster City vans each recording year-over-year sales increases for the month.

Although GM saw a decline in sales for August, through the first eight months of the year, the company’s retail sales are up 1 percent, which continues to be the largest retail share gain of any full-line automaker.

GMC’s Yukon and Yukon XL had their best August since 2007, with 43 percent and 66 percent sales increases, respectively. Year to date, Buick retail deliveries have grown 3 percent and Buick has gained 0.1 percentage points of retail share.

Year to date, Chevrolet also posted its best retail sales performance since 2007, with retail sales up more than 2 percent.

“Despite tighter dealer inventories, we had a solid retail performance in August led by Chevrolet, which gained retail share in eight different segments,” says Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president of sales operations for GM.

Along with its 8 percent decrease in U.S. sales, Ford’s fleet sales of 45,949 were also down 10 percent.

Company officials say the growth of retail sales for Ford’s Lincoln brand is due to a 55 percent retail increase in Lincoln MKX sales and an 8 percent uptick in MKZ retail sales.

“Strong sales of high-end Lincoln vehicles and Ford SUVs also helped us continue outpacing the industry in average transaction pricing, which increased $1,200 versus a year ago,” says Mark LaNeve, vice president of U.S. Marketing, Sales, and Service at Ford. “Vans continue to be a bright spot for Ford — a consistent growth story for us this year.”

Ford’s van sales for August were up 13 percent versus a year ago, due to the company’s Transit brand gaining 17 percent, with 11,993 vehicles sold, while truck sales were down 2 percent, with 88,372 vehicles sold.