Tundra Gains Sales Traction
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Tundra Gains Sales Traction
I was surprised by this - maybe the Tundra will reach its goal; at least according to Automotive News???
Link to the full story is below; unfortunately, it requires a paid subscription to Automotive News to work (which I don’t have).
LINK:
https://home.autonews.com/clickshare...onews_response
After a shaky start, the redesigned Toyota Tundra is gaining traction. Automotive News reports today that the Tundra is on track to meet its goal of 200,000 sales for the year.
Sales have been aided by generous incentives, but Toyota throttled them back this month. Tundra sales are modest compared with pickup sales at GM, Ford, and Chrysler. But doubts that Toyota could crack the segment are fading. Toyota built a $1.28 billion plant in San Antonio to assemble the redesigned Tundra. The pickup is also assembled in Princeton, Ind.
Dane Crowe, general sales manager at McCree Ford in Dickinson, Texas, near Houston, said his store has felt the Tundra's arrival. Says Crowe: "When you've got a new vehicle like the Tundra that comes out immediately with huge incentives, it makes it attractive and makes it hard for people not to cross-shop."
According to J.D. Power and Associates' Power Information Network, 40.3 percent of Tundra buyers traded in a Toyota vehicle for their new truck. This indicates that Toyota relies on the Toyota faithful for a significant portion of Tundra sales.
Sales have been aided by generous incentives, but Toyota throttled them back this month. Tundra sales are modest compared with pickup sales at GM, Ford, and Chrysler. But doubts that Toyota could crack the segment are fading. Toyota built a $1.28 billion plant in San Antonio to assemble the redesigned Tundra. The pickup is also assembled in Princeton, Ind.
Dane Crowe, general sales manager at McCree Ford in Dickinson, Texas, near Houston, said his store has felt the Tundra's arrival. Says Crowe: "When you've got a new vehicle like the Tundra that comes out immediately with huge incentives, it makes it attractive and makes it hard for people not to cross-shop."
According to J.D. Power and Associates' Power Information Network, 40.3 percent of Tundra buyers traded in a Toyota vehicle for their new truck. This indicates that Toyota relies on the Toyota faithful for a significant portion of Tundra sales.
LINK:
https://home.autonews.com/clickshare...onews_response
Registered User
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 3,180
From: Yadkinville, NC USA
The fact that Toyota has had to discount these BRAND NEW trucks to meet their MINIMUM sales goal speaks volumes about it.
If Ford or GM offered a brand new redesign, I doubt you'd see them dumping their most massive advertising budget ever onto it, only to turn around and start discounting them a few months after launch.
I'd temper my enthusiasm about their early success.
Likewise, how nice of autonews to make such a bland statement about Toyota "possibly" meeting their goal, while GM is breaking new ground with their Volt, and Ford is putting out some of the highest quality vehicles on the market lately.
If Ford or GM offered a brand new redesign, I doubt you'd see them dumping their most massive advertising budget ever onto it, only to turn around and start discounting them a few months after launch.
I'd temper my enthusiasm about their early success.
Likewise, how nice of autonews to make such a bland statement about Toyota "possibly" meeting their goal, while GM is breaking new ground with their Volt, and Ford is putting out some of the highest quality vehicles on the market lately.
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Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 3,664
From: Brunswick, Maine 04011
They have to "buy" the market. It's just how it works if you are a foreign manufacturer playing in a pretty much all US market with a product that is primarily bought by traditional Americans who have Calvin stickers and swear by their favorite US brand.
The Tundra seems to be generally a decent vehicle. Sure there has been some press about an engine problem, sure sales have been slow, sure some people don't like the interior, but overall it seems like a pretty stable vehicle. I suspect Toyota will flip flop around on incentives for a couple of years just trying to gain market share and a solid base of reviews. They have certainly spent a small fortune so far on advertising and sooner of later if there is a large enough base of vehicles in service more and more people will at least put Toyota on the test drive list when shopping for a new truck.
Its just how the game works and Toyota is in a good financial position to use their money to go after Ford,GM, and Dodge.
The Tundra seems to be generally a decent vehicle. Sure there has been some press about an engine problem, sure sales have been slow, sure some people don't like the interior, but overall it seems like a pretty stable vehicle. I suspect Toyota will flip flop around on incentives for a couple of years just trying to gain market share and a solid base of reviews. They have certainly spent a small fortune so far on advertising and sooner of later if there is a large enough base of vehicles in service more and more people will at least put Toyota on the test drive list when shopping for a new truck.
Its just how the game works and Toyota is in a good financial position to use their money to go after Ford,GM, and Dodge.
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Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 859
From: AR (PA born and fled)
The fact that Toyota has had to discount these BRAND NEW trucks to meet their MINIMUM sales goal speaks volumes about it.
If Ford or GM offered a brand new redesign, I doubt you'd see them dumping their most massive advertising budget ever onto it, only to turn around and start discounting them a few months after launch.
I'd temper my enthusiasm about their early success.
If Ford or GM offered a brand new redesign, I doubt you'd see them dumping their most massive advertising budget ever onto it, only to turn around and start discounting them a few months after launch.
I'd temper my enthusiasm about their early success.
I fear for them right now.
1) The new Chevy truck is cosmetically unappealing to most and sales are suffering for it.
2) I spent this past weekend racing in Topeka, Kansas. Just about as "heartland America" as you can get. While going through tech, a competitor showed up towing a wild C Prepared Trans Am with a new Tundra.
He spent a considerable amount of time answering the questions of multiple people, questions not regarding his TA but his truck. I've never seen such interest in a non tricked out, ordinary run of the mill truck before.
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 2,400
From: Michigan's left coast
Face it - Toyota's got a serious truck with a serious powertrain, and a lot of prospective light-truck buyers won't touch a domestic. The latter of the two issues can be mitigated in one's own mind with some harsh words towards the anti-domestic crowd, but no amount of flag-waving is going to offset Toyota's domination of the powertrain metrics. And as we've seen over the years, the winner of the power wars typically does quite well in the showroom, too.
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Total marketing budget for the Tundra launch was stated by media sources to be 100 million.
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From: Chicagoland IL
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From: South Bend , IN
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Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 3,463
From: SoCal
Well this is usually how Toyota breaks into a segment. Their feeling is get the truck in as many homes as possible and then let the owners fall in love with them and Toyota and they are hooked for life. This was the way they pushed the Camry too. To be honest it's not a bad plan if you can back it up and their record shows they can.
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From: SoCal
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Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 859
From: AR (PA born and fled)
I absolutely hate the new Chevy pickups but really like the Chevy SUVs and GMC pickups. I remember when that first photo of the red Chevy truck was leaked my first thought was "Uh oh, this is trouble".
I only knew about the cash allowances because I was looking at the '07 GMC Duramaxes last week. If the 0% / 60 months applied the 2500HDs instead of only the 1500s, there's a very good possibility I'd have one in the driveway right now.
In the end, I decided to wait a few model years until I'm a little more confident in the new diesel emissions equipment.
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 2,030
From: Frankfort, KY U.S.A.
GM really needs to dump the "This is our country.....this is our truck" campaign and really gets some truck fighting commercials going. The new GM trucks have a lot going for them, why not show them off at what they do best, instead of a commercial with the truck parked in a field. Tundra commercials are on everytime I turn the TV on, but I can't remember the last time I saw a Chevy truck commercial.
The styling is objective, I think it a good continuation of styling from previous generations, but GMC seems to always have a better nose than the Silverado.
The styling is objective, I think it a good continuation of styling from previous generations, but GMC seems to always have a better nose than the Silverado.