September 2012 sales thread

[rimtrim]

Mainstream C-segment and D-segment car rankings (I'll let somebody else do the other segments...):

Camry 34,252
Accord 29,182
Altima 24,448
Sonata 17,332
Optima 14,304
Fusion 12,300
Malibu 11,188
200 9,881
Passat 9,500
Avenger 8,716
Legacy 4,124
6 1,403

Cruze 25,787
Corolla/Matrix 23,026
Civic 21,546
Focus 19,736
Elantra 18,305
Jetta 14,750
3 14,031
Sentra 9,345
Forte 6,912
Impreza 6,071 (incl. WRX)
Dart 5,235

Cruze had its second blockbuster month in a row. Malibu not so much...I'll give it through the end of the calendar year before I'm ready to use the "F" word. The Fusion is in the middle of the 2012/13 changeover, so this month's number probably means nothing for the long term.

The Dart is still struggling...I'll give Chrysler some slack there, because they were starting from zero, rather than replacing an existing, successful model. Part of the problem may also be that the Avenger is a screaming deal right now. People may be going in to look at a Dart, seeing that the Avenger is actually cheaper, and buying that instead.

-Andrew L

[1985Jetta]

I've never heard anything bad about the last generation Malibu's quality. If it is significantly worse than a Passat of similar vintage, please pass some links that support this.

My grandpa has a '09 Malibu 2.4 and a '08 Malibu Maxx 3.5. They've been great.

[whitejeep1989]

Mainstream C-segment and D-segment car rankings (I'll let somebody else do the other segments...):

Camry 34,252
Accord 29,182
Altima 24,448
Sonata 17,332
Optima 14,304
Fusion 12,300
Malibu 11,188
200 9,881
Passat 9,500
Avenger 8,716
Legacy 4,124
6 1,403

Cruze 25,787
Corolla/Matrix 23,026
Civic 21,546
Focus 19,736
Elantra 18,305
Jetta 14,750
3 14,031
Sentra 9,345
Forte 6,912
Impreza 6,071 (incl. WRX)
Dart 5,235

Cruze had its second blockbuster month in a row. Malibu not so much...I'll give it through the end of the calendar year before I'm ready to use the "F" word. The Fusion is in the middle of the 2012/13 changeover, so this month's number probably means nothing for the long term.

The Dart is still struggling...I'll give Chrysler some slack there, because they were starting from zero, rather than replacing an existing, successful model. Part of the problem may also be that the Avenger is a screaming deal right now. People may be going in to look at a Dart, seeing that the Avenger is actually cheaper, and buying that instead.

-Andrew L

According to a post on GMI, Chevy only built 18K Malibus last month. If true, it sounds like they are still ramping up to producing the non-eAssist models. So, I'd definitely hold off on declaring it dead.

[PlatinumGLS]

Camry 34,252
Accord 29,182
Altima 24,448
Sonata 17,332
Optima 14,304
Fusion 12,300
Malibu 11,188
200 9,881
Passat 9,500
Avenger 8,716
Legacy 4,124
6 1,403

I am surprised the 200 and Avenger are selling so well.

[1985Jetta]

Not surprised about the 200 but the Avenger yes, I am surprised.

[rimtrim]

According to a post on GMI, Chevy only built 18K Malibus last month. If true, it sounds like they are still ramping up to producing the non-eAssist models. So, I'd definitely hold off on declaring it dead.

Rather than production figures, I like to use cars.com to see lot inventory. That gives a better idea of whether something is moving or sitting. It seems like the vast majority of new cars on retail lots in the US are listed on cars.com, and they have good search tools. You can even narrow down by trim level and how long cars have been listed, so you can see which trims are moving off the lots faster.

Currently they show about 33K Malibus in stock nationally (mostly '13s, some '12s left). So, there's plenty of supply. By contrast, there are about 11K Fusions in stock, which means that it's more plausible to argue that the Fusion's number was caused by lack of inventory.

But, I'll give GM a few more months to get their act together. I don't think the Malibu is a fundamentally bad vehicle...it may not be best-in-class, but it should be sellable.

-Andrew L

[rimtrim]

I am surprised the 200 and Avenger are selling so well.

They have a high fleet percent, but I think they're now doing decent retail too. They key is they're such a great deal. A basic Avenger (decently equipped) is under $20K on the sticker. A V6 is like $23K. You can't get a V6 anything else for anywhere near that cheap.

I really like the 200. If I trusted Chrysler powertrains, I'd kind of want one. Where else can you get a midsize sedan that looks almost like a luxury car, for like $19K?

I'll be interested to see what they do with the replacements for these models. I imagine they're going to do a substantial price hike to get in line with the rest of the segment. If they do that, the cars are going to have to be really good.

-Andrew L

[akuma]

VOLKSWAGEN REPORTS A 34.4 PERCENT SALES INCREASE IN SEPTEMBER

- Best September since 1972 with 36,339 units sold and a 37.2 percent increase year-to-date -
• 25 consecutive months of year-on-year growth
• Best September ever for Passat and Tiguan with 9,500 and 2,202 units sold, respectively
• Best September for Beetle since 2003
• Best September for Golf since 2007
• Jetta Sedan achieved sales of 12,584 units
• High-mileage, clean diesel TDI models account for 23.9 percent of sales in September.

http://media.vw.com/pressrelease/123...ease-september

looking at their monthly and yearly numbers from 2012 and 2011 , shows that virtually all of their gains come from the Passat and the new Beetle. if it weren't for these two product lines, VW would actually be down for the year YTD from 2011, so their overall product lineup outside of the Passat and Beetle are doing worse as a whole. over the next several months, their sales percentage increases will drop to the single digits or lower.

[AZGolf]

Overall Mitsubishi sales were 4,806 units, down 17.2 percent compared to September 2011.

Mitsubishi remains on death watch for the US market. However they're still looking down on the other little automaker from Japan:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...172318601.html

BREA, Calif., Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- American Suzuki Motor Corporation (ASMC) today reported September 2012 sales of 1,921 units. SX4 sales were up 1% year over year and continue to lead sales with a 2% year to date sales increase.

The Brea, Calif.-based Automotive Operations of American Suzuki Motor Corporation was founded in 1963 by parent company Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) and currently markets its vehicles in the United States through a network of automotive dealerships and numerous other motorcycle, ATV and marine distributors. With global headquarters in Hamamatsu, Japan, SMC is a diversified worldwide automobile, motorcycle and outboard motor manufacturer. Founded in 1909 and incorporated in 1920, SMC has operations in 201 countries and regions. For more information, visit www.media.suzukiauto.com.

SOURCE American Suzuki Motor Corporation

PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1oXKf)

That works out to 1.28 Suzukis sold per US state, per day in September.

[TangoRed]

The Dart is still struggling...I'll give Chrysler some slack there, because they were starting from zero, rather than replacing an existing, successful model. Part of the problem may also be that the Avenger is a screaming deal right now. People may be going in to look at a Dart, seeing that the Avenger is actually cheaper, and buying that instead.

-Andrew L

As Swallow Doretti noted, this may be because automatics are just now coming into the pipeline.

[TOMPASS]

I wasn't talking about the last gen, I was talking about this thing. The Taurus of the era was equally bland. Terrible cars which sold well because many people in that segment just don't care.

My brother-in-law had one of these and drove the crap out of it.
It wasn't really a bad car-reliable, cheap, decent mileage-it was more of an unremarkable, boring and utterly forgettable appliance. A decent appliance, but an appliance.
My wife drives an 05 Malibu, more of the same, and fine for her since she views cars as yep, appliances. If her dad hadn't been a lifelong GM employee, she'd probably drive a Camry.

[Stroker McCarlo]

Misc. Cool Cars

Challenger 3,230 (-3%)
Mustang 4,439 (-12.2%)
Camaro 5,670 (-18.9%)
370Z 436 (-7%)
WRX 1,079 (-38%)

Corvette 1,351 (+17.8%)
Porsche 911 509 (+1%)
GT-R 119 (+11.2%)

[eweu]

That works out to 1.28 Suzukis sold per US state, per day in September.

I'll make a huge SWAG and say Suzuki has 300 dealers in the US (is that even close?). That means just over one car per week sold per dealer. Wow.

[AZGolf]

I'll make a huge SWAG and say Suzuki has 300 dealers in the US (is that even close?). That means just over one car per week sold per dealer. Wow.

That makes it sound even more sad. They must be staying alive by partnership alone. In other words, it's a Suzuki/Mazda/Ford dealer that makes money off service and used car sales of all makes/models. Clearly there's no way any standalone Suzuki dealer could stay in business with that kind of weak sales rate. I tried to look up Suzuki dealers using their website dealer locator but it doesn't return any results. If that's not a bad omen, I don't know what is.

[kingrukus]

I'm not going to defend that car, but were any family sedans particularly exciting in the late 1990s? Even GM made better midsizers back then (Olds Alero)!

5 speed nissan maxima

[feels_road]

looking at their monthly and yearly numbers from 2012 and 2011 , shows that virtually all of their gains come from the Passat and the new Beetle. if it weren't for these two product lines, VW would actually be down for the year YTD from 2011, so their overall product lineup outside of the Passat and Beetle are doing worse as a whole. over the next several months, their sales percentage increases will drop to the single digits or lower.

That's a very myopic point of view. You realize the Jetta numbers have been stagnating since the introduction of the Passat because people choose the larger car for about the same money, yes? So, it is impossible to look at models in isolation. Furthermore, the Jetta has a ton of build-in room to lower its price (likely with a change in equipment levels, so resales aren't affected as much). Also, did you miss the fact that Golf sales are up 34%, Tiguan 35.3%? And you make it sound like VW has no new models coming up that will pick up the slack: e.g., Jetta Hybrid next month and next year the MkVII Golf and then the EV/plug-in Golf, among others.

Also, several of their models are niche products that don't make much of a dent in overall sales (Eos, Touareg, Routan).

I agree, however, that there will be less of an increase during the months when the MkVI Golf will no longer be available (and the MkVII is not yet here).

[Hajduk]

looking at their monthly and yearly numbers from 2012 and 2011 , shows that virtually all of their gains come from the Passat and the new Beetle. if it weren't for these two product lines, VW would actually be down for the year YTD from 2011, so their overall product lineup outside of the Passat and Beetle are doing worse as a whole. over the next several months, their sales percentage increases will drop to the single digits or lower.

The Golf, Tiguan, and Touareg are up significantly as well.

[acuraudi]

Audi sets all-time U.S. September sales record with 26.5% increase
Audi reports 21st consecutive month of record sales; premium category vehicles (A8, A7, A6, and Q7) represent 35.7% of September demand
Audi today reported its 21st consecutive month of record performance with sales of 12,302 new vehicles representing a 26.5% increase above the old mark set in September 2011.

Total Audi sales year-to-date increased 18.5% from last year, with September setting the record for the period January through September, with 100,694 vehicles sold. Audi already has exceeded 100,000 U.S. sales for the third time ever, and September 2012 stands as the third-best month of U.S. sales in Audi of America history.

Sales of Audi premium category vehicles (the Audi A8, Audi A7, Audi A6, and Audi Q7) showed no signs of slowing down, with a 35.7% share of total September sales. Audi momentum benefitted strongly from robust demand for the technologically advanced Audi A6, generating a 83.7% sales increase for the month and a 107.5% increase year to date. Audi’s flagship vehicle, the Audi A8 sedan, is up 34.1% and the Audi Q7 luxury SUV also performed favorably with an astounding 94.6% increase for the month.

Sales of the updated Audi A4 combined with the new Audi allroad jumped 12.8% in September from a year earlier, while the product improvement for the Audi A5 helped boost its sales 25.6% for the month and 10.9% year-to-date. Furthering the U.S. position as a top market globally for Audi S model performance cars, sales of the Audi performance models accounted for 10.4% of the September’s sales mix.

“Our newly expanded lineup of S-model performance cars is delivering strong immediate results,” said Mark Del Rosso, Chief Operating Officer, Audi of America. “This fact, along with increasing demand for our refreshed core models, bodes well for record sales results by year-end and more gains into 2013.”

Highlights:
• September 2012 ranks as the best September in Audi of America history.
• Sales mix for Audi S models finished the month at 15.3% for the S4 and 35.5% for the S5/ RS 5.
• Audi A3 sales up 76.8% compared to September 2011; YTD sales grew 14.5% compared to previous period.
• Audi A4 sales up 12.8% compared to September 2011; YTD sales grew 10.9% compared to previous period.
• Audi A5 sales up 25.6% compared to September 2011; YTD sales grew 10.9% compared to previous period.
• Sales of Audi A6 increased 83.7% compared to September 2011; YTD sales up 107.5% compared to previous period.
• Sales of the Audi A8 increased 34.1% compared to September 2011.
• Sales of Audi Q7 increased 94.6% compared to September 2011; YTD sales up 8.5% compared to previous period.
• Sales mix for Audi TDI clean diesel models finish the month at 55.2% for the A3 TDI and 32.4% for Q7 TDI; sales of the Audi A3 TDI increased a solid 90.2% for the month.
• For the record-setting month of September 2012, four Audi models recorded year-over-year sales increases of 20% or more, including the Audi A3, Audi A5, Audi A6, Audi A8, and Audi Q7 models.
• Audi Certified pre-owned sales of 2,799 vehicles marked a strong finish despite the reduced inventory of available models for the program.

[acuraudi]

BMW brand up 4.9 percent year-to-date, MINI brand up 16.6 percent year-to-date, best September ever,

By BMW of North America, LLC

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., OCT. 2, 2012 — WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported September sales of 26,660 vehicles, an increase of 3.5 percent from the 25,749 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, BMW Group is up 7.1 percent on sales of 234,928 in the first nine months of 2012 compared to 219,314 in the same period in 2011.

"The economic indicators and consumer confidence are showing improvement and the traffic in our showrooms is further encouraging our optimism for the fourth quarter of the year as the BMW new model ramp-up continues," said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America, LLC. "The X1 in its first full month is largely sold out and MINI set another sales record; both are strong indicators of what's to come."

BMW Brand Sales Sales of BMW brand vehicles increased 0.1 percent in September for a total of 21,761 compared to 21,750 vehicles sold in September, 2011. Year-to-date, the BMW brand is up 4.9 percent on sales of 186,397 compared to 177,679 sold in the first nine months of 2011.

In September, the X1 SAV in it full sales month, sold 1,570 units. Other best performing vehicles for the month include the 6 Series, up 80.2 percent to 609 units; and the X3 SAV, up 63.7 percent to 3,034 units.

BMW Pre-Owned Vehicles In September, sales of BMW used vehicles (including certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 3.8 percent to 13,624 vehicles from the 13,129 vehicles sold in September 2011. January through September, BMW used vehicle sales are up 2.6 percent on volume of 122,575 compared to 119,424 in the same period of 2011.

MINI Brand Sales MINI USA reported the best September ever with sales of 4,899 automobiles, an increase of 22.5 percent from the 3,999 sold in September, 2011. Year-to-date, MINI sales in the U.S. are up 16.6 percent on volume of 48,531 compared to 41,635 in the first nine months of 2011.

Table 1: Vehicle Sales BMW of North America, LLC, September 2012

Sept '12 Sept '11 % YTD Sept '12 YTD Sept '11 %
1 Series 515 674 -23.6% 5,535 6,572 -15.8%
3 Series 7,731 9,289 -16.8% 68,352 70,566 -3.1%
Z4 187 140 33.6% 1,952 2,932 -33.4%
5 Series 3,189 4,097 -22.2% 38,328 37,996 0.9%
6 Series 609 338 80.2% 5,482 2,217 147.3%
7 Series 464 869 -46.6% 8,103 7,750 4.6%
X1 1,570 N/A N/A 2,146 N/A N/A
BMW passenger cars 14,265 15,407 -7.4% 129,898 128,033 1.5%
X3 3,034 1,853 63.7% 22,591 19,167 17.9%
X5 3,850 3,878 -0.7% 29,682 26,047 14.0%
X6 612 612 0.0% 4,226 4,432 -4.6%
BMW light trucks 7,496 6,343 18.2% 56,499 49,646 13.8%
BMW brand 21,761 21,750 0.1% 186,397 177,679 4.9%
Cooper /S Hardtop 1,796 1,884 -4.7% 21,343 20,845 2.4%
Cooper /S Convertible 306 447 -31.5% 3,792 3,995 -5.1%
Cooper /S Clubman 417 461 -9.5% 4,249 5,517 -23.0%
Coupe 184 N/A N/A 2,206 N/A N/A
Roadster 194 N/A N/A 1,596 N/A N/A
Countryman 2,002 1,207 65.9% 15,345 11,278 36.1%
MINI brand 4,899 3,999 22.5% 48,531 41,635 16.6%
TOTAL BMW of North America, LLC 26,660 25,749 3.5% 234,928 219,314 7.1%
BMW Motorrad Sales BMW Motorrad USA reported sales of 790 motorcycles in September, an increase of 6.0 percent from the total of 745 motorcycles sold in September 2011. Year-to-date, BMW Motorrad is up 14.7 percent on sales of 9,497 compared to 8,280 sold in the first nine months of 2011. In September, the best performing models included the F 800 GS, up 102.2 per cent to 89 units; and the S 1000 R, up 23.1 per cent to 128 units.

Table 2: Motorcycle Sales BMW of North America, LLC, September 2012

September 2012 September 2011 % YTD
2012

YTD 2011 %
BMW Motorcycles 790 745 6.0 9,497 8,280 14.7
BMW Group In America BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, a strategic design consultancy in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group's global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all X5 and X3 Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 338 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 139 BMW motorcycle retailers, 115 MINI passenger car dealers, and 32 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group's sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via the Internet at: www.bmwgroupna.com
Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwgroupusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com .

SOURCE BMW of North America, LLC


Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/10/...#storylink=cpy

[Swallow Doretti]

As Swallow Doretti noted, this may be because automatics are just now coming into the pipeline.

Also, the average price of the manual transmission-equipped cars delivered during the first several months was closing in on $25K. Chrysler WAY over-equipped the initial run, driving up the prices to what consumers were not willing to pay.

On the flip side, if anyone here is looking for a well-equipped Dart with a stick, now is the time to buy.

[whitejeep1989]

Also, the average price of the manual transmission-equipped cars delivered during the first several months was closing in on $25K. Chrysler WAY over-equipped the initial run, driving up the prices to what consumers were not willing to pay.

On the flip side, if anyone here is looking for a well-equipped Dart with a stick, now is the time to buy.

As someone said earlier, the Dart is probably banging elbows with the slightly larger but more powerful Avenger. Let's face it, if you are willing to go to a Dodge dealership the styling of the Avenger probably is appealing to you anyway. Bigger car with a V6 and heavily discounted, probably is an easier sell. Even though the Avenger is bigger, it is amazing to see the Dart parked next to it. The Dart is almost a mid-sized car. It is easy to understand why the Avenger won't be getting a replacement next year, as the Dart covers mid-size and compact pretty easily.

[whitejeep1989]

5 speed nissan maxima

Mid-sized by today's standards, I think the Maxima that you speak of was always Nissan's "large" car. The Altima/Stanza was their bread and butter Camry fighter.

If we are talking about quality large cars from GM of that era, I'd put the mid to late 1990s Bonneville SE up against the Maxima any day. The supercharged Bonnie was very well-received by the press and public alike.

[S4cabriofox]

ILX 1737
CT 1195
A3 806
1 Series 515

C 7872
3 Series 7731
ES 6653
A4/A5 4629
G 3677
TL 3236
CTS 3103
MKZ 2575
IS 2248
TSX 1681

E 4826
5 Series 3189
XTS 2506
A6 2065
GS 1454
MKS 709
M 500
RL 34

(XTS 2506)
S 925
A7 720
CLS 709
Panamera 606
LS 558
A8 551
7 Series 464
Equus 320

GLK 3206
X3 3034
RDX 2938
Q5 2256
X1 1570
Evoque 559
EX 253

RX 7046
MDX 4692
X5 3850
ML 2439
JX 2251
MKX 2110
FX 1659
Range Rover Sport 1514
Cayenne 1370
Q7 1051
GX 948
Touareg 828

X6 612
ZDX 42

GL 1960
QX 1105
(Q7 1051)
LX 372
G wagen 83

SLK 418
Boxster/Cayman 251
Z4 187
TT 174

SL 621
6 Series 609... no separation of the two-door and the GT
911 509
GT-R 119
R8 50
CL 45
SLS AMG 37
LFA 4

There's definitely stuff I don't have/couldn't find.

[PlatinumGLS]

ILX 1737
CT 1195
A3 806
1 Series 515

Thanks for posting.

Where is the Verano?

How about the SRX?

[Hajduk]

(XTS 2506)
S 925
A7 720
CLS 709
Panamera 606
LS 558
A8 551
7 Series 464
Equus 320

My how things have changed with this class. I remember when the Lexus would dominate. The 7- series has tanked too.

[curvedinfinity]

GM's cars added

Verano 4042
ILX 1737
CT 1195
A3 806
1 Series 515

C 7872
3 Series 7731
ES 6653
A4/A5 4629
LaCrosse 4,580
G 3677
TL 3236
MKZ 2575
IS 2248
Regal 1839
TSX 1681
ATS 611

E 4826
5 Series 3189
CTS 3103
XTS 2506
A6 2065
GS 1454
MKS 709
M 500
RL 34

(XTS 2506)
S 925
A7 720
CLS 709
Panamera 606
LS 558
A8 551
7 Series 464
Equus 320

GLK 3206
X3 3034
RDX 2938
Q5 2256
X1 1570
Evoque 559
EX 253

RX 7046
MDX 4692
SRX 4660
Enclave 4210
X5 3850
ML 2439
JX 2251
MKX 2110
FX 1659
Range Rover Sport 1514
Cayenne 1370
Q7 1051
GX 948
Touareg 828

X6 612
ZDX 42

GL 1960
Escalade 1696
QX 1105
(Q7 1051)
LX 372
G wagen 83

Corvette 1,351
SLK 418
Boxster/Cayman 251
Z4 187
TT 174

SL 621
6 Series 609... no separation of the two-door and the GT
911 509
GT-R 119
R8 50
CL 45
SLS AMG 37
LFA 4

There's definitely stuff I don't have/couldn't find.

[BLK9GEN]

I'll make a huge SWAG and say Suzuki has 300 dealers in the US (is that even close?). That means just over one car per week sold per dealer. Wow.

At their peak Suzuki had approx. 550 dealers in the states. They're now somewhere in the mid-200 range. I know in 2010 they tried to reduce the number to as low as 200, but some dealers fought that. Quite the drastic change in course from 2004 when they were hoping for 600 dealers by 2006 and continued growth after that.

Suzuki really needs a willing ally (i.e. not VW). They can't go it alone. The Kizashi was quite simply a better engine and expanded dealer network away from greatness.

media.suzuki.com/auto/index.php?p=27

[whitejeep1989]

Misc. Cool Cars

Challenger 3,230 (-3%)
Mustang 4,439 (-12.2%)
Camaro 5,670 (-18.9%)
370Z 436 (-7%)
WRX 1,079 (-38%)

Corvette 1,351 (+17.8%)
Porsche 911 509 (+1%)
GT-R 119 (+11.2%)

Dodge really must have know the audience for the Challenger very well. It has been holding steady at about 3300/mo. since production started. There have been peaks, but it rarely goes below 3300. Camaro and Mustang tend to be on a slight rollercoaster. I guess moving into fall hurts Camaro and Mustang convertible sales? Chally doesn't offer a drop top, so it's sales stay stable?

[whitejeep1989]

GM's cars added

It seems like the public is definitely willing to vote for GM with their wallets. A lot of their segment competitive cars are far from being inexpensive, so GM isn't selling on low base price. This gives me hope for the Omega flagship(s) from Caddy. If the XTS can vault so close to the front of it's segment, a proper Caddy flagship should have no trouble keeping up with the S-Class and 7-Series.

[locobaz23]

C 7872
3 Series 7731
ES 6653
A4/A5 4629
G 3677
TL 3236
CTS 3103
MKZ 2575
IS 2248
TSX 1681

.

What percentage of C class sales are from fleet? Every time I'm at the rental counter, I'm offered an upgrade to the Class. I've never seen a 3 series at a national rental chain.

[retro_rocket]

At their peak Suzuki had approx. 550 dealers in the states. They're now somewhere in the mid-200 range. I know in 2010 they tried to reduce the number to as low as 200, but some dealers fought that. Quite the drastic change in course from 2004 when they were hoping for 600 dealers by 2006 and continued growth after that.

According to Automotive News, they had 246 dealers in the US as of April.

http://www.autoweek.com/article/2012...NEWS/120419880

One of the most worrisome piece of information has to be this:

He says about 150 of Suzuki's remaining 246 dealers still sell five or fewer new cars per month, despite recent efforts to weed out poorly performing dealers.

Taking this into account, even the 100 or so "better" dealers are only averaging 11-12 cars a month

Probably why most Suzuki dealers I see (the ones that still exist, anyway) have used cars on their front line, and the new vehicles stuffed in the back somewhere.

[FJC]

Cool to see the Camaro outselling Mustang again. Both great cars, but evidently the whining about visibility and bloatedness around here means little to America.

[Minority5]

Verano, over 4000. Regal, gulp, 1800.

I know the Regal is TCL's favorite whipping boy, but it's close to the sales benchmark (TSX), the Verano has pretty much quadrupled the ILX sales consistanty.

[Mike!]

14000 Mazda3s in one month? Wow. They must be pushing capacity in Japan.

That's gotta take a chunk out of their xx days supply.

[Bav17]

I am surprised the 200 and Avenger are selling so well.

As others have said, these cars offer a good value, ive seen v6 models discounted close to $20k, 4 cylinder models deep into mid teens. The products were greatly improved in the 11 model year. Lets also consider the fact that the 2 are essentially the same car, The platforms sold together over 18k units, no camry numbers, but nothing to laugh at, even if there were plenty of fleet sales.