Cruze Sales Drop, Domestic Automakers Report Gains
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – All three American auto manufacturers today reported an increase in September sales over a year ago. General Motors Co. reversed its 24% drop in August and posted 12.5% increase last month, while Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles continued their streak of year-over-year gains.
Fiat Chrysler attained its 66th consecutive month of sales increases.
General Motors’ gain came behind the sales of 251,130 cars, trucks and SUVs. Of that number, retail consumers bought 2013,895, a 17.3% gain over September 2014. Chevrolet led GM sales with 170,675 vehicles, an 11% jump. Within the brand, the Silverado pickup held its spot as the top seller, posting a 7% increase as 53,725 left showrooms.
The Lordstown-built Cruze continued its sales slide as deliveries were down almost 24% from last September, totaling 14,032.
For GM’s other brands, Buick sales rose 5% to 18,341 with the Encore leading at 5,624, Sales of Cadillacs climbed 7.8% to 14,908 as the SRX crossover led with 6,849 and GMC sales gained 23.8% over last year with the Sierra pickup leading at 19,754.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reported a 13.6% increase in sales across its six brands, with 193,019 cars, trucks and SUVs sold. The company’s American brands – Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram – posted an increase of 13.8%.
Jeep sales totaled 77,201 last month, a climb of 40% over September 2014. All of the brand’s models posted double-digit gains, with the exception of the Patriot, which fell 6.4% after 8,533 were sold, and the Renegade, introduced earlier this year. The Cherokee line led sales with 20,224 hitting the streets, a 38.8% increase over last year.
Dodge sales were up 2.6% to 45,170. The Caravan led sales with 10,568 sold in September, although sales were down 6.3%. Only three Dodge models posted sales gains last month – the Dart up 4.6% to 7,244 sold, the Challenger up 2.5% to 4,552 and the Journey, which gained 44.6% to 10,457.
Sales of the Ram truck line were up to 45,170, a 4% increase from a year ago. The Ram pickup held almost even as 36,598 were sold last month, compared to 36,612 in September 2014. The ProMaster Van was second with 2,483.
Chrysler posted a 5.3% drop in sales to 27,250 behind a 30% decline in sales of the Town & Country van. Only 9,163 were sold nationwide last month. Sales were led by the 200, as 11,364 left showrooms.
While Ford Motor Co. reported a 23% sales climb for its titular brand, its second also posted a gain of 19.6% as the Lincoln nameplate had its best September since 2007, and every model posted a year-over-year sales increase with 8,680 sold. The MKZ led Lincoln sales with 2,490.
For Ford, the Fusion by far led car sales with 24,942, a 15% year-over-year increase, while the Escape crossover led SUV sales with 28,473, a 31.1% climb. The F-150 truck remained the company’s top seller, as 69,651 were sold, a 16.4% gain. In total, the Ford brand moved 212,919 cars, trucks and SUVs last month.
Among other notable sales changes were the nearly 200% increase in sales of Ford’s most iconic car, the Mustang, as sales hit 9,456 last month and a 729% increase for the Transit utility van, which sold 10,154 in September.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
