According to The Detroit News numbers, GM sales were down to 213,387 primarily due to a 25% drop in fleet sales. Retail sales were essentially flat. GMC posted a sales increase of 4.5% during the month, driven by a 20% increase in sales of the GMC Sierra pickup and a 9% jump for the GMC Terrain crossover. Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac all saw total sales fall during April compared to the same month in 2011. GM had strong sales of the Chevrolet Sonic at 6,387 units and Buick Verano at 2,989. The Chevy Volt sold 1,462 units.
Ford sales in the U.S. totaled 180,350 in April, compared to 189,778 a year ago. Vehicles were down 4.7%, while its Lincoln brand fell 12.8%. Ford’s car sales fell 11.2%, while its trucks and SUV sales were nearly flat — down just 1%. Fiesta sales fell 44%, while Focus sales were up 12.5%. Ford Escape sales fell 20%, while Edge sales were up 12.4%.
Chrysler sold 141,165 cars and trucks for April. The company’s Fiat brand posted the biggest gain, with sales leaping 336% YOY. Its sole offering, the Fiat 500, was just being launched a year ago. But the Chrysler 200, Dodge Challenger and Jeep Wrangler also set new sales records for April. Dodge Avenger sales reached a new high, with sales up 47%.
Toyota said its 178,044 sales in April jumped 11.6% from the same month a year ago. Volkswagen reported its best April sales in the U.S. since 1971, when it was the leading import brand in the country. VW’s sales rose 31.5% last month to 37,525 cars and light trucks. U.S. vehicle sales are up 38% YTD.
Nissan said its total sales were down 0.3% in April from the same month a year ago. The company sold 71,329 vehicles in the U.S. Its Nissan division saw sales fall 0.9% to 64,200 units, though the Rogue and Versa set new April sales records. Its Infiniti division sales were up 5.4%, to 7,129 units.
Kia Motors America posted its best-ever April sales figures of 47,550 vehicles, up about 1% from last April, and has posted 20 straight months of sales gains, the Detroit News said.
Hyundai Motor America sales jumped 1% to a record 62,264 units in April, the second-best sales month in it history, following March’s all-time record.
Honda said its overall sales fell 2.2% in April compared to the same month a year ago. Sales for the Honda division were down 3%, while Acura’s sales were up 4.9% — fueled by a strong jump in sales of the midsize SUV, the RDX. Sales of the all-new RDX are up more than 65% from the same month a year earlier. Honda saw sales of its Accord jump 25.6% from 4/11, while the company said sales of the CR-V of 23,627 units set a record for April.
See the full Detroit News story here.
