UPDATED: December and End of 2012 Year Automobile Sales Report

[Atomic]

UPDATED:

Due to holidays and year-end tallying, reports had just begun trickling early hours on 01/03/2013

(SEE BELOW ENTRIES BEGINNING ON JANUARY 3rd FOR ACTUAL SALES FIGURES)

Thanks!

Happy New Year 

Glad to be back, brothers! Atomic "Tom"


Well, a tad early but predictions are good for a decent December 2013.

ARTICLE BELOW

BY: Nick Bunkley -- Follow Nick on 

FOR: Automotive News -- December 20, 2012 - 10:08 am ET

December has been a particularly good month for luxury vehicles, whose sales are on pace to account for 16 percent of retail sales, J.D. Power said...

DETROIT -- Car shoppers have been "unfazed" by uncertainty related to the so-called fiscal cliff looming at the end of this month, and U.S. sales are expected to be up 14 percent in December, J.D. Power and Associates and LMC Automotive said today.

The firms estimated this month's seasonally adjusted annualized selling rate to be 15.3 million, slightly below the 15.4 million posted in November. Automotive News calculated the November SAAR to be 15.6 million, which was the highest since January 2008.

If the forecasts prove accurate, total U.S. light-vehicle sales for 2012 would be 14.5 million.

"The U.S. light-vehicle sales market continues to be a bright spot in the tremulous global environment," Jeff Schuster, senior vice president of forecasting at LMC Automotive, said in a statement. "The only major roadblock ahead for the U.S. market is the fiscal cliff. Assuming that hurdle is cleared, 2013 is one step closer to a stable and sustainable growth rate for autos, with volume above the 15 million unit mark."

Lawmakers and the Obama administration remain in negotiations over the fiscal cliff, which refers to tax increases and government spending cuts set to take effect at the end of this year.

J.D. Power projects a December retail selling rate of 12.2 million units, down from 13.2 million in November but up from 11.3 million in December 2011.

December has been a particularly good month for luxury vehicles, whose sales are on pace to account for 16 percent of retail sales, J.D. Power said. That would mark the segment's highest share since December 2009 . The accounted for 14.8 percent of the market a year ago.

"Luxury sales always do well this time of the year, but December is turning out to be a great month," said John Humphrey, senior vice president of global automotive operations at J.D. Power. "New and redesigned vehicle introductions, along with enhanced incentive activity, have been key drivers of the recovery in the luxury market."

LMC said North American light-vehicle production was up 19 percent through November compared with the same period of 2011, to 14.4 million units. It expects total production for the year to be 15.4 million units, a 17 percent increase from 2011.

In 2013, LMC said North American production forecast will probably reach 15.8 million units, up 3 percent, "with further upside potential contingent on the pace of demand in the first half of 2013."

[Atomic]

Initial Report While Awaiting Final Sales Figures

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100335238/December_2012_New_Car_Sales_Expected_to_Be_Up_10_Percent_According_to_TrueCar_December_2012_SAAR_at_156M_Highest_Since_December_2007

[Atomic]

SOURCE: Automotive News, January 3, 2013

DECEMBER U.S. AUTO SALES

- VW, Honda lead gainers as industry caps strong finish to 2012
- GM, Ford, Toyota post single-digit increases

Reporting for Automotive News: David Phillips

Automotive News -- January 3, 2013 - 8:45 am ET

UPDATED: 1/3/13 1:47 p.m. ET -- adds Kia results   

Volkswagen Group's VW brand and Honda Motor Co. led early gains among automakers reporting year-end results today, outpacing the Detroit 3 and Toyota as the industry finished 2012 on a high note.

The VW brand -- helped by newer models such as the mid-sized Passat and compact Jetta -- posted a December U.S. sales gain of 35 percent. VW sales for the year rose 35 percent to more than 438,000 units.

American Honda said sales rose 26 percent to 132,774 units last month, driven by demand for the new Accord, Civic and CR-V. Honda said the Civic set a December sales record of 33,118 units - up 61 percent from 2011.

With more than half of the industry reporting, J.P. Morgan pegged December's seasonally adjusted annual sales rate at 15.5 million. That would match the figure for November, which was the industry's strongest month since January 2008.

December marked the 16th straight month VW's U.S. sales have climbed 22 percent or more.

Jonathan Browning, CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, said the company's sales growth will taper off in 2013.

"The Passat and Beetle have been in the market for over a year, so we won't get the same step-up as last year," Browning said today. "We do expect to grow faster than the industry in total."

Healthy retail demand, year-end discounts and a surge in car deliveries helped Chrysler Group report a 10 percent gain in December.

Toyota Motor Sales reported a 9 percent December sales increase and said 2012 deliveries rose 27 percent to 2.08 million as it continued to rebound from the 2011 earthquake in Japan. It will release additional sales results later today.

General Motors' sales rose 5 percent last month and 4 percent for all of 2012. Buick and Cadillac led the December gains, with advances of 5 percent and 12 percent, respectively. Chevrolet deliveries were up 4 percent.

GM cited strong retail demand and higher deliveries of cars, crossovers and pickup trucks for the company's December results.

Ford Motor Co. said December sales rose 2 percent, as the Ford Division advanced 2 percent and Lincoln fell 12 percent. Ford's sales for the year rose 5 percent.

Fuel-efficiency

Detroit automakers are also benefiting from the introduction of more fuel-efficient vehicles. GM said it sold more than 1 million vehicles in the United States last year that achieve an EPA-estimated 30 mpg or more on the highway.

Ford said its small car sales soared 29 percent to 316,006 units last year, including 13,309 deliveries of the new C-Max hybrid.

Fiat led all Chrysler brands with a 59 percent gain last month, the company said. For 2012, Fiat's U.S. sales of the 500 mini car line more than doubled to 43,772.

December sales rose 26 percent at Dodge and 16 percent at the Ram brand, but Jeep volume slipped for the third consecutive month, reflecting the end of Liberty production in August.

Chrysler's car sales rose 30 percent last month while light-truck deliveries increased 4 percent.

For all of 2012, Chrysler's U.S. sales increased 21 percent to 1.65 million.

It was the 33rd straight month Chrysler has posted an increase in U.S. sales as the automaker heads towards its third consecutive year of market-share gains. Chrysler's share of U.S. sales stood at 11.4 percent through November, up from 10.7 percent during the same period of 2011.

Hyundai's U.S. sales rose 17 percent in December and gained 9 percent in 2012, Hyundai Motor America CEO John Krafcik said via Twitter. Krafcik said Hyundai sold 59,435 vehicles last month and a record-setting 703,007 units last year.

At Nissan Motor Co., December sales slipped 2 percent, with volume at the Nissan brand down 4 percent but Infiniti up 15 percent. For all of 2012, Nissan Motor's U.S. sales rose 10 percent, with the Nissan brand setting a sales record of 1.02 million.

Kia Motors' U.S. sales declined -- for the first time in more than two years -- by 11 percent last month to 39,178 vehicles. The automaker's previous monthly drop was in August 2010, when industry-wide sales results were skewed by numbers inflated a year earlier by the U.S. government's Cash for Clunkers vehicle scrappage program.

Despite the dip last month, Kia sold a record 557,599 vehicles in the U.S. market in 2012, a 15 percent increase over last year.

Other automakers are scheduled to report December sales results later today. It's expected to be another strong month, helped by pent-up demand, holiday deals, low-rate financing and easing credit terms.

Jesse Toprak, chief market analyst for TrueCar, said the latest car and truck models, often equipped with more features, are also compelling U.S. consumers to consider a new-vehicle purchase.

Healthy streak

Light-vehicle sales in December are forecast to cap a three-year run unrivaled in almost four decades as U.S. consumers continue to replace cars and trucks that are, on average, the oldest ever on America's roads.

Car and light truck sales were forecast to rise 9.8 percent in December, according to a Bloomberg survey of analysts. That would mean a third-straight annual gain of at least 10 percent, the first such industry streak since 1973.

"It sure feels a lot better to be selling cars today than a few years ago," Geoffrey Pohanka, president of the Pohanka Automotive Group, told Bloomberg. "The age of the fleet and the attractiveness of a lot of cars that are being designed now are going to help sustain sales going forward."

Pohanka's Washington, D.C.-area dealer group is expanding only a few years after retrenchment. Pohanka closed three Saturn stores and a Chrysler-Dodge dealership as part of the 2009 restructuring of General Motors and Chrysler Group. In 2013, he plans to build a second Honda store in as many years and also will add a new VW dealership.

U.S. light-vehicle sales in December are expected to climb to almost 1.37 million, based on the average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. That would push deliveries for the full year to 14.5 million, the best annual total since 2007.

Sales are also being driven by a steady, though sometimes choppy, economic recovery, despite high unemployment.

"The budget compromise reached in Washington this week removes uncertainty and clears the way for full-year light vehicle sales to rise to the 15 million to 15.5 million unit range in 2013," Kurt McNeil, head of U.S. sales operations for GM, said in a statement.

But Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, chief economist for Ford, said today the automaker planned to gauge the impact of higher U.S. payrolls taxes and "how consumers are going to substitute and economize on certain purchases."

GM, Ford, Hyundai-Kia and Nissan are on track to lose U.S. market share for 2012, while Toyota, Chrysler, Honda and the Volkswagen Group are expected to gain the most share.

Sandy demand

Lingering replacement demand from owners of damaged vehicles and purchases deferred by superstorm Sandy on the East Coast may have boosted vehicle sales by about 50,000 in December, Credit Suisse Group AG estimated in a report late last month.

The sales rate was 13.6 million in December 2011. The United States averaged 16.8 million light-vehicle deliveries annually from 2000 to 2007, before volume dropped to 10.4 million in 2009, a 27-year low.

Americans have held onto their cars, crossovers and minivans longer, pushing the average age of vehicles on U.S. roads to about 11 years, according to researchers at Experian Automotive and R.L. Polk & Co.

TrueCar.com estimates industry incentives averaged $2,409 per model in December, up 4.3 percent from November but down 9 percent from December 2011.

Brianna Valleskey, Ryan Beene and Bloomberg contributed to this report

More information expected throughout the day.

[Raza]

Wow.  Selling out the Volkswagen diehards to sell to would-be Japanese car buyers really did wonders for their sales numbers.  Good for VW, I guess.  As a former Passat and Jetta owner, I wouldn't touch either of the current models.  But I did recommend the current Passat to an unthusiast friend, and he loves it to bits.

[ifcar]

Top 30 best-seller charts:
http://www.examiner.com/article/america-s-most-popular-cars-the-top-30-best-selling-vehicles-of-2012

[Atomic]

Top 30 best-seller charts:
http://www.examiner.com/article/america-s-most-popular-cars-the-top-30-best-selling-vehicles-of-2012

Yes! Thank you, Iffy... I missed your monthly reporting and did the best I could to gather some figures 

[MexicoCityM3]

BMW overtakes Mercedes for U.S. luxury sales in 2012

Sales of BMW brand vehicles increased 39.4 percent in December 2012 for a total of 37,399, enough to put BMW ahead of its old and classic competitor: Mercedes-Benz. After last month's sales results, BMW is crowned for the second consecutive year the number one premium automaker in the United States.

An impressive boost came from the 5 Series sedan model which grew 72 percent in December. Mercedes reported a 9.5 percent increase as well helped by the full-size E-Class sedan which rose 32 percent.

Through November, Mercedes held the lead with 1,849 vehicles sold more than BMW, but at the end of the year, the Bavarians finished with 281,460 vehicles sold, topping Mercedes-Benz by 7,326 units (274,134).

"The post-recession sales momentum that started in 2010 reached an unprecedented level in December, making us strongly confident and optimistic as we enter 2013," Ludwig Willisch, chief executive officer of BMW of North America, said in a statement for BusinessWeek.

Compared to last year, BMW sales rose 14 percent for 2012 while Mercedes' sales increased 12 percent. Lexus finished third with 244,166 vehicles, 23 percent gain from previous year.

[ifcar]

Best-sellers by approximate market class, with an asterisk denoting a new winner compared to 2011:

Subcompact cars: Kia Soul
Compact cars: Honda Civic*
Midsize cars: Toyota Camry
Large cars: Chevrolet Impala
Entry-luxury cars: BMW 3-Series
Luxury cars: Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Compact crossovers/SUVs: Honda CR-V*
Midsize crossovers/SUVs: Chevrolet Equinox
Large crossovers: Ford Explorer/Interceptor
Large SUVs: Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban
Entry-luxury crossovers/SUVs: Lexus RX
Luxury crossovers/SUVs: BMW X5
Vans: Dodge Grand Caravan*
Pickups: Ford F-Series

Full Top 10 sales charts for each class:
http://www.examiner.com/article/top-10-best-selling-cars-of-2012-by-class

[Atomic]

As nice as the Kia Soul is (loved my rental considering price of vehicle), I am amazed at well this car sells. It's well worth its price and more, I just do not see all that many around. However, I imagine they sell far better outside of the snow-belt region of New York, like Florida and other warm climates. AWD/4x4 SUV's are the rage here.

[Atomic]

Some older models are really soldiering on. Not just cars like the bargain basement Chevy Impala, rather vehicles like the Honda Pilot, Acura MDX, Infiniti G-Class cars and so one -- car, trucks and SUV's not typically sold into fleets. I imagine it has a lot to do with such factors as real/perceived reliability, proven track-record, resale value and due in large part to brand recognition and customer loyalty.

[Raza]

An impressive boost came from the 5 Series sedan model which grew 72 percent in December. Mercedes reported a 9.5 percent increase as well helped by the full-size E-Class sedan which rose 32 percent.

Another car that went bigger and softer.  Enthusiasts with money just don't exist. 

[MexicoCityM3]

Another car that went bigger and softer.  Enthusiasts with money just don't exist. 

I think that what actually happens is that enthusiasts with money can afford several cars and probably prefer a soft sedan + a Porsche. You can be an enthusiast and like diversity in your cars' character, don't you think?

[SVT666]

Interesting to note that the Camaro only outsold the Mustang by less than 1400 units for the entire year in 2012.

[Atomic]

I think that what actually happens is that enthusiasts with money can afford several cars and probably prefer a soft sedan + a Porsche. You can be an enthusiast and like diversity in your cars' character, don't you think?

That makes sense. Regarding many non enthusiasts but those equally as rich or moreso in some situations, it's all about squeezing every cent from the dealer and manufactuer as possible. I am astonished by how much less wealthier associates seemingly pay for their upscale vehicles than those of us working especially hard long hours or a second job to afford one. I credit them and realize that is why they are top business people but I have witnessed some very interesting, long drawnout battles over a few hundred dollars when I would have caved in long ago.

[Colin]

There is a certain irony that much criticised Honda Civic actually took the sales crown of its class......... Honda must be wondering whether it really was necessary spending the moeny on the emergency facelift just to shut the journalists up as the car was selling strongly anyway.

Further proof that merit and sales success are not necessarily a direct and linear relationship.   

[Atomic]

There is a certain irony that much criticised Honda Civic actually took the sales crown of its class......... Honda must be wondering whether it really was necessary spending the moeny on the emergency facelift just to shut the journalists up as the car was selling strongly anyway.

Further proof that merit and sales success are not necessarily a direct and linear relationship.   

I read somewhere in a business publication that it was a great thing for Honda that the company produced the MY12 Civic and then redesigned it so quietly for at least two reasons: (1) The 2012 buyer are very apt to be brand loyalists now and almost certain to purchase another Civic, move into a more expensive Honda produce or advance to an Acura; and( 2) an a nearly complete redesigned '13 model will almost guarantee greater exposure until the next generation Civic arrives -- and in less time, at that. Probably true. Honda certainly wasn't giving the 2012 models away despite popular belief and fleet sales remained at the usual 2% or thereabouts.

[Atomic]

An Interesting Sales Chart Available at Allpar.com:

http://www.allpar.com/news/index.php/2013/01/dart-was-best-selling-all-new-car-of-2012

I like their take on compiling (or providing any way) best selling "all new" car for the given year -- obviously touting the new 2013 Dodge Dart.

[ifcar]

It's not surprising -- no one else had failed to introduce a car in such a critical segment until just now, so theirs weren't all-new.

[Madman]

There is a certain irony that much criticised Honda Civic actually took the sales crown of its class......... Honda must be wondering whether it really was necessary spending the moeny on the emergency facelift just to shut the journalists up as the car was selling strongly anyway.

Further proof that merit and sales success are not necessarily a direct and linear relationship.   

Many a true word spoken in jest.........

http://autoblopnik.com/2012/11/29/honda-redesigns-civic-to-please-people-who-wont-buy-it/