GM reports February sales unexpectedly jump 3.7%!!!

Good news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GM reports February sales unexpectedly jump 3.7%!!!

GM reports February sales unexpectedly jump 3.7%!!!

News like that, while good, makes me wonder if GM management really knows what is going on. . .

GM Sales Climb 3.7%; Ford, Chrysler Sales Slide

Wall Street Journal - March 1, 2007 2:11 p.m.

General Motors Corp. posted a 3.7% gain in February U.S. light vehicle sales as retail sales surged 11%.

Ford Motor Co. said its February sales of cars and light trucks in the U.S. fell nearly 14%, as it slashed sales to rental-car companies by 30%. Chrysler, the U.S. unit of DaimlerChrysler AG, also reported lower sales.

The world's largest auto maker, which is cutting sales to fleet customers, posted an 18% drop in fleet sales, as part of a planned 25% reduction in sales to daily rental car companies.

GM kept its first-quarter North American production forecast unchanged at 1.1 million vehicles, and set its North America second-quarter output forecast at 1.2 million vehicles, down 5% from a year earlier.

GM's sales of cars and light trucks stood at 308,411 in February, up from 297,481 a year earlier. GM's sales of light trucks rose 7.9% to 199,509. Car sales fell 3.3% to 108,902.

In recent trading, GM shares edged up 16 cents, or 0.5%, to $32.07.

GM's sales figures followed the auto maker's announcement earlier Thursday that it will ask for more time to file its annual results for the second straight year because of accounting issues. Investors are looking to the 2006 report, which was due Thursday, to provide a glimpse of GM's restructuring progress. In late January, the company said it would delay the release of its fourth-quarter results to correct five years of reporting errors. At the time, it said it expected to post a profit for the period, lifted by record revenue.

Ford Sales Fall 14%
Ford said its February sales of cars and light trucks in the U.S. fell 14% as it slashed sales to rental-car companies by 30%. The U.S. auto maker said it sold 211,150 cars and light trucks in February, compared with 244,021 a year ago.

The Dearborn, Mich., company's passenger car sales fell 22%, while sales of trucks and sport-utility vehicles -- representing Ford's most profitable business -- were down 8.4%.

In a news release, Ford said its inventory level sat at 603,000 vehicles at the end of February, 175,000 units lower than a year ago. Ford's February sales decline follows a 19% year-over-year sales slide for January.

Ford will produce 740,000 vehicles in the first quarter, unchanged from the prior plan. For the second quarter, the company plans to produce 770,000 vehicles, down 14% from 897,000 vehicles a year ago. The lowered production outlook mainly reflects discontinued products and the planned reduction in sales to daily rental companies, Ford said.

GM and Ford have been reducing sales to rental-car fleets, which carry low profit margins, to concentrate on more lucrative sales to customers at dealerships. The move stems from an overall shift by buyers away from trucks and sport-utility vehicles toward more fuel-efficient vehicles, mostly built by Asian companies.

Chrysler Sales Decline 8.3%
Chrysler said February sales fell 8.3% to 174,506 vehicles. The company will release a breakdown of its Chrysler sales later in the day.

Chrysler, which is the focus of a strategic review that could even lead to its sale, posted total sales of 174,506 vehicles for the month, down from 190,367 a year earlier.

Chrysler consists of the Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge brands and is a heavy seller of pickups and sport-utility vehicles. The German parent company's luxury Mercedes-Benz division posted a 0.3% drop in February U.S. sales.

There were 24 selling days last month, the same number as a year ago.

Meanwhile, Honda said its U.S. sales rose 3.2% on stronger demand for its trucks. Nissan reported a 1.2% rise in U.S. sales.

Toyota Motor Corp., which will release its sales numbers shortly, could move closer to unseating Ford as the No. 2 auto maker in the U.S.

The Japanese industrial icon topped Ford in sales for January and passed its U.S. competitor twice in monthly sales during 2006. It is expected to solidify its hold on the No. 2 spot sometime this year. Tuesday, Toyota said it would build a new SUV plant in Mississippi, its eighth plant in North America.

Edmunds.com predicts Toyota sales will rise 17% from a year ago, again vaulting it over Ford in terms of U.S. market share.

So fleet went down 18% but total sales were up near 4%? Not bad...

Thats good news compared to the woes Chrysler and Ford had last month in sales.

So with Ford and GM cutting fleet, what manufacturers are stepping up to fill the need for fleet?

So with Ford and GM cutting fleet, what manufacturers are stepping up to fill the need for fleet?

I'm seeing lots more KIA/Hyundais around here.

Something just ocurred to me regarding a comparison between GM and Toyota's North American sales number. Since GM still sells nearly twice as many vehicles compared to Toyota, won't percentage increases in sales, compared to the whole, seem smaller?

I could be wrong - I'm a liberal arts major for a reason.

My monthly spin on things:

1 This time last year, Chrysler was still inflating their production even though sales weren't keeping up. A drop of 8.3% seems pretty modest considering the stockpile of vehicles they had.

2. Ford is about to unload half of it's assembly workers. Ford can probally take a far bigger hit than just 14% and actually see profits improve. I do wonder if Ford might be going overboard in dumping rental sales. 30% is nothing to take lightly.

3. GM cut rental sales by a more reasonable 11%. But there is still alot of bad news:

* Buick is down 24%
* Cadillac is down 28%
* Everything at Chevrolet is down except Aveo and Impala. Enough for a 1.8% gain.
* Pontiac is also down, but only 5.9%

Saturn and GM's trucks are carrying this month's sales increase.

* GM's trucks are up 7.4% overall
* Suburbans up 33%
* Sierra's up almost 23%
* Colorado up 19%

* Saturn is up 60%

* Saturn is up 60%


Thats awesome, put great new vehicles on your lineup, and they sell.. Even for an "odd" brand like Saturn. If Saturn can do it, the rest of the brands can.

Link to production numbers Guy was talking about:

http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/IROL/84/84530/sales_production/Deliveries_0207.xls

Solstice is down quite a bit. That's a slight cause for concern.

Link to production numbers Guy was talking about:

http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/IROL/84/84530/sales_production/Deliveries_0207.xls


Can someone change to a different program, I don't have Excel

Solstice is down quite a bit. That's a slight cause for concern.

It's February

My monthly spin on things:

1 This time last year, Chrysler was still inflating their production even though sales weren't keeping up. A drop of 8.3% seems pretty modest considering the stockpile of vehicles they had...

G,

Although it's not always easy to tell from an article like this, I think you are confusing "sales" numbers with "production" numbers. Regardless of how many vehicles a manufacturer produces in a given month, when they report "sales" that should be actual end user sales.

Solstice is down quite a bit. That's a slight cause for concern.

base price keeps going up as well. Will keep people away even though they are likely adding items to standard equipment.

On a side note............ what is up with the Lambda's???

The Ford Edge outsold the Acadia and Outlook combined. This is all the more troubling when you look at the lukewarm reviews for the Edge, vs the great reviews for the Lambda's.

So, I ask, whats up??? (remember that Edge supplies are constricted also, as they only started showing up on lots in mid December)

This really shows that trucks are GM's strength. This is good news. Im not a big fan of GM but i'd hate to see a company with so much history go down. This shows theyre still alive and kickin.

G,

Although it's not always easy to tell from an article like this, I think you are confusing "sales" numbers with "production" numbers. Regardless of how many vehicles a manufacturer produces in a given month, when they report "sales" that should be actual end user sales.

Robert, I think you have it confused. When GM reports a sale I believe it is a sale to a dealership, where GM's sale ends.

Robert, I think you have it confused. When GM reports a sale I believe it is a sale to a dealership, where GM's sale ends.

Robert's on planet Nissan, you have to cut him some slack.

A sale is a sale just as a registration is a registration. Production is not what sales figures are base on, Robert.

On a side note............ what is up with the Lambda's???

The Ford Edge outsold the Acadia and Outlook combined. This is all the more troubling when you look at the lukewarm reviews for the Edge, vs the great reviews for the Lambda's.

So, I ask, whats up??? (remember that Edge supplies are constricted also, as they only started showing up on lots in mid December)

Maybe because the Edge is much smaller than GM's offerings of Outlook and Arcadia and is in a different segment?? I know the Equinox/Torrent was one of my last choices when I looked for an SUV around that size. Actually it bordered POS compared to the others I looked at.

I LOVED The Outlook but it was a little bit bigger than what we wanted. Ended up getting an 07 Murano.
I think we will see the Arcadia and Outlook pick up sales as they get more exposure.

The Ford Edge outsold the Acadia and Outlook combined. This is all the more troubling when you look at the lukewarm reviews for the Edge, vs the great reviews for the Lambda's.
Here, I see at least 4 to 5 commercials a night of the "Edge", with the car driving on the side of skyscrapers with the "I like to live on the Edge" song playing in the background...
I can't remember seeing ONE Acadia or Outlook commercial yet, maybe it's my location..:shrug:
Out of sight, out of mind....

Yep, Edge is smaller, generally less expensive and has gotten a monster push from Ford even before its release. It's also a bit telling that Ford is already offering financing incentives on the Edge. They aren't huge incentives, but they are there.

Robert, I think you have it confused. When GM reports a sale I believe it is a sale to a dealership, where GM's sale ends.
No - not confused...production numbers refers to the units that come out of the end of the plant; sales are those unites actually sold to the end user (meaning the dealer unless the article is specifically referring to retail sales to individual customers).

I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with guionM’s point; I just pointing out (not that I expect that ssbaby would get it), that there is a difference between a manufacturer’s production counts and its sales; they are not interchangeable terms nor are they interchangeable numbers.

I think the sticking point is that Chrysler was loosing sales a year ago Feb. and they were still producing the same number of vehicles (or more) so the stockpile went up. Production doesn't have an impact on sales numbers. (unless there are not enought to meed demand, not an issue here)
G, stated that an 8.3% decrease in sales this Feb. over last years numbers wasn't to bad. I don't know if I agree with that because a loss like that over a poor sales mark last year isn't good.

I think the sticking point is that Chrysler was loosing sales a year ago Feb. and they were still producing the same number of vehicles (or more) so the stockpile went up. Production doesn't have an impact on sales numbers. (unless there are not enought to meed demand, not an issue here)
G, stated that an 8.3% decrease in sales this Feb. over last years numbers wasn't to bad. I don't know if I agree with that because a loss like that over a poor sales mark last year isn't good.

The telling number in this case is neither sales or production.

It's market share.

Everyone will have competed in the same conditions. Those gaining share are the ones to watch.

Well that, and inventory, lol..

The telling number in this case is neither sales or production.

It's market share.

Everyone will have competed in the same conditions. Those gaining share are the ones to watch.

Market share those are evil words in Detroit! :D

If we throw in market share then we should add profits in too...
There are so many ways to measure car companies. I think the reason why eveyone takes these monthly sales numbers only so seriously is because its only part of the very big picture. GM can be up in sales down in profits and market share but up in production.

All it means is Rick Wagoner has a few more grey hairs, they keep the lights on and build and sell more cars for us to argue about.

We'll be here next month same time and place.

I don't work at a GM plant, but at my UAW plant, vehicles come down the line, already purchased, with the name of the customer at the top of the build sheet, our customers being Companies.
Actually layoffs etc are based on the "Order Board"(sales) not so much on projected sales.

If you want to be pedantic, no manufacturer can directly influence market share... it's just a sometimes meaningless statistic which could help to make a convincing argument. The manufacturer does, however, have direct input to sales and production... and profit!

There, had to get that off my chest.

Here, I see at least 4 to 5 commercials a night of the "Edge", with the car driving on the side of skyscrapers with the "I like to live on the Edge" song playing in the background...
I can't remember seeing ONE Acadia or Outlook commercial yet, maybe it's my location..:shrug:
Out of sight, out of mind....
I have seen one Outlook commercial, cannot recall seeing an Acadia one.

My area seems to not be able to get enough inventory, they are selling the Outlooks and Acadias that do come in. Perhaps production will ramp up so they have some on the lot, Saturn dealer had one that was sold, and GMC dealer had one that was also sold. That's it.

Yep, Edge is smaller, generally less expensive and has gotten a monster push from Ford even before its release. It's also a bit telling that Ford is already offering financing incentives on the Edge. They aren't huge incentives, but they are there.

The Edge has a $500 rebate on the SE model only. Seems that dealers "assumed" the SE (cheaper model) would sell better than the more optioned out SEL and SEL Plus models. They were very wrong. Thus, a glut of SE's equals a small rebate.

My understanding is that the Lambda's have a $1000 rebate. Correct???

The Edge has a $500 rebate on the SE model only. Seems that dealers "assumed" the SE (cheaper model) would sell better than the more optioned out SEL and SEL Plus models. They were very wrong. Thus, a glut of SE's equals a small rebate.

My understanding is that the Lambda's have a $1000 rebate. Correct???

irrelevant. two different sized vehicles that will appeal to different crowds. 8-passenger vs. 5-passenger. Like comparing sales of a 2-door vs. 4-door. different pricing blah, blah, blah

hey as long as the Edge sells. Ford need all the help it can get.

My understanding is that the Lambda's have a $1000 rebate. Correct???

Right now I couldn't find any national rebates (unless you want to count $500 to Military Personnel.)

http://www.carquotes.com/NewCarRebateMake.aspx

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2007/gmc/acadia/100819751/incentives.html

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2007/saturn/outlook/100788367/incentives.html

http://cmsimg.detnews.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=C3&Date=20070302&Category=AUTO01&ArtNo=703020379&Ref=H3&Profile=1148&MaxW=1500&Q=100&title=1
Hope that pic works.

http://cmsimg.detnews.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=C3&Date=20070302&Category=AUTO01&ArtNo=703020379&Ref=H3&Profile=1148&MaxW=1500&Q=100&title=1
Hope that pic works.

works.