By The Numbers: September 2006 (The REAL numbers)
Toyota up big, Ford up a little while GM, Chrysler and Honda slip
Pardon the tardiness of this report, but most manufacturers decided to present their September sales figures in a misleading way by comparing the raw number of vehicles sold last month to those sold in September 2005. We prefer to compare the Daily Sales Rate, obtained by dividing the number of vehicles sold in a month by the number of selling days in that month. Since last month had 26 selling days and September of 2005 had 25, most automakers decided to mitigate their losses or pad their gains by taking advantage of that extra selling day in their comparisons. So it took us a little longer to go through and correct the data that was misleading, and indeed some positive performances fell into the red once corrected. Credit goes to General Motors, Toyota and a few others for not giving us more work to do and providing the Daily Sales Rate to begin with. So forget about the numbers you see plastered all over the internet and the news, these are the real numbers. So lets begin...
Toyota is officially on a tear. Its sales in the month of September rose 20.2% versus the same time last year. The Toyota division itself increased sales 21.3% last month to 197,250 units, firmly placing it ahead of Chevrolet for the month and not far behind the Ford brand.
Speaking of Ford, the Blue Oval has some good news finall thanks to a September that saw sales for the company rise a modest .66%. The Focus and Mustang had big gains and the Fusion triplets continue to sell well. What helped the most, however, was surprisingly strong performances from the Explorer, Expedition and F-Series, all of which were up last month. Aren't these things supposed to be losing popularity?
General Motors and the Chrysler Group both took modest dips last month of 6.8% and 7.5%, respectively. However, it was Honda falling off 7.76% that was the big surprise. Apparently, the new Civic's sheen is beginning to wear off and the Accord, as great a mid-size family sedan as it is, is beginning to look staid next to the new Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion and Hyundai Sonata.
Biggest Winner
Saab
48.8% at 3,069 (9/05: 1,983)
Commendable Month
Toyota21.28% at 197,250 (9/05: 156,381)
Biggest Loser
Jaguar
–47.8% at 1,158 (9/05: 2,135)
Scary Month
Dodge–20.8% at 79,784 (9/05: 96,890)
BRANDS
Acura–5.64% at 16,323 (9/05: 16,634)
Audi2% at 8,004 (9/05: 7,854)
BMW–11.31% at 20,339 (9/05: 22,052)
Buick–11.1% at 19,463 (9/05: 21,050)
Cadillac17.8% at 20,217 (9/05: 16,507)
Chevrolet–10.6% at 190,825 (9/05: 205,238)
Chrysler0.0% at 47,211 (9/05: 45,546)
Dodge–20.8% at 79,784 (9/05: 96,890)
Ford3.26% at 204,070 (9/05: 190,012)
GMC1.1% at 39,141 (9/05: 37,233)
Honda–8.1% at 99,903 (9/05: 104,529)
HUMMER11.6% at 6,739 (9/05: 5,806)
Hyundai–16% at 33,384 (9/05: 38,214)
Infiniti–9.8% at 10,378 (9/05: 11,062)
Isuzu16.6% at 1,397 (9/05: 1,152)
Jaguar–47.8% at 1,158 (9/05: 2,135)
Jeep21.62% at 41,893 (9/05: 33,120)
Land Rover2.61% at 3,469 (9/05: 3,425)
Lexus12.1% at 25,700 (9/05: 22,036)
Lincoln–26.91% at 7,362 (9/05: 9,686)
Mazda2.19% at 20,261 (9/05: 19,918)
Mercedes8.86% at 19,873 (9/05: 17,552)
Mercury–5.77% at 13,117 (9/05: 13,385)
MINI–5.84% at 2,964 (9/05: 3,027)
Mitsubishi9.24% at 10,287 (9/05: 9,054)
Nissan–9.1% at 77,962 (9/05: 82,478)
Pontiac–13.6% at 37,376 (9/05: 41,597)
Porsche–.61% at 2,339 (9/05: 2,263)
Saab48.8% at 3,069 (9/05: 1,983)
Saturn4.4% at 20,153 (9/05: 18,569)
Subaru–3.67% at 16,128 (9/05: 16,100)
Suzuki7.0% at 7,940 (9/05: 7,131)
Toyota21.28% at 197,250 (9/05: 156,381)
Volkswagen–10.79% at 20,082 (9/05: 21,646)
Volvo–2.24% at 9,672 (9/05: 9,514)
TBA: Kia
COMPANIES
BMW Group–10.6% at 23,303 (9/05: 25,079)
Chrysler Group–7.49% at 168,888 (9/05: 175,556)
Ford Motor Co.66% at 238,848 (9/05: 228,157)
General Motors–6.8% at 338,380 (9/05: 349,202)
Honda America–7.76% at 116,226 (9/05: 121,163)
Nissan North America–9.2% at 88,340 (9/05: 93,540)
Toyota Motor Co.20.2% at 222,950 (9/05: 178,417)
Editors note: All percentages are reported as the change in daily sales rate (DSR) since there were 26 selling days in September 2006 versus 25 selling days in September 2005.
Pardon the tardiness of this report, but most manufacturers decided to present their September sales figures in a misleading way by comparing the raw number of vehicles sold last month to those sold in September 2005. We prefer to compare the Daily Sales Rate, obtained by dividing the number of vehicles sold in a month by the number of selling days in that month. Since last month had 26 selling days and September of 2005 had 25, most automakers decided to mitigate their losses or pad their gains by taking advantage of that extra selling day in their comparisons. So it took us a little longer to go through and correct the data that was misleading, and indeed some positive performances fell into the red once corrected. Credit goes to General Motors, Toyota and a few others for not giving us more work to do and providing the Daily Sales Rate to begin with. So forget about the numbers you see plastered all over the internet and the news, these are the real numbers. So lets begin...Toyota is officially on a tear. Its sales in the month of September rose 20.2% versus the same time last year. The Toyota division itself increased sales 21.3% last month to 197,250 units, firmly placing it ahead of Chevrolet for the month and not far behind the Ford brand.
Speaking of Ford, the Blue Oval has some good news finall thanks to a September that saw sales for the company rise a modest .66%. The Focus and Mustang had big gains and the Fusion triplets continue to sell well. What helped the most, however, was surprisingly strong performances from the Explorer, Expedition and F-Series, all of which were up last month. Aren't these things supposed to be losing popularity?
General Motors and the Chrysler Group both took modest dips last month of 6.8% and 7.5%, respectively. However, it was Honda falling off 7.76% that was the big surprise. Apparently, the new Civic's sheen is beginning to wear off and the Accord, as great a mid-size family sedan as it is, is beginning to look staid next to the new Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion and Hyundai Sonata.
Biggest Winner
Saab
48.8% at 3,069 (9/05: 1,983)Commendable Month
Toyota
21.28% at 197,250 (9/05: 156,381)Biggest Loser
Jaguar
–47.8% at 1,158 (9/05: 2,135)Scary Month
Dodge
–20.8% at 79,784 (9/05: 96,890)BRANDS
Acura
–5.64% at 16,323 (9/05: 16,634)Audi
2% at 8,004 (9/05: 7,854)BMW
–11.31% at 20,339 (9/05: 22,052)Buick
–11.1% at 19,463 (9/05: 21,050)Cadillac
17.8% at 20,217 (9/05: 16,507)Chevrolet
–10.6% at 190,825 (9/05: 205,238)Chrysler
0.0% at 47,211 (9/05: 45,546)Dodge
–20.8% at 79,784 (9/05: 96,890)Ford
3.26% at 204,070 (9/05: 190,012)GMC
1.1% at 39,141 (9/05: 37,233)Honda
–8.1% at 99,903 (9/05: 104,529)HUMMER
11.6% at 6,739 (9/05: 5,806)Hyundai
–16% at 33,384 (9/05: 38,214)Infiniti
–9.8% at 10,378 (9/05: 11,062)Isuzu
16.6% at 1,397 (9/05: 1,152)Jaguar
–47.8% at 1,158 (9/05: 2,135)Jeep
21.62% at 41,893 (9/05: 33,120)Land Rover
2.61% at 3,469 (9/05: 3,425)Lexus
12.1% at 25,700 (9/05: 22,036)Lincoln
–26.91% at 7,362 (9/05: 9,686)Mazda
2.19% at 20,261 (9/05: 19,918)Mercedes
8.86% at 19,873 (9/05: 17,552)Mercury
–5.77% at 13,117 (9/05: 13,385)MINI
–5.84% at 2,964 (9/05: 3,027)Mitsubishi
9.24% at 10,287 (9/05: 9,054)Nissan
–9.1% at 77,962 (9/05: 82,478)Pontiac
–13.6% at 37,376 (9/05: 41,597)Porsche
–.61% at 2,339 (9/05: 2,263)Saab
48.8% at 3,069 (9/05: 1,983)Saturn
4.4% at 20,153 (9/05: 18,569)Subaru
–3.67% at 16,128 (9/05: 16,100)Suzuki
7.0% at 7,940 (9/05: 7,131)Toyota
21.28% at 197,250 (9/05: 156,381)Volkswagen
–10.79% at 20,082 (9/05: 21,646)Volvo
–2.24% at 9,672 (9/05: 9,514)TBA: Kia
COMPANIES
BMW Group
–10.6% at 23,303 (9/05: 25,079)Chrysler Group
–7.49% at 168,888 (9/05: 175,556)Ford Motor Co
.66% at 238,848 (9/05: 228,157)General Motors
–6.8% at 338,380 (9/05: 349,202)Honda America
–7.76% at 116,226 (9/05: 121,163)Nissan North America
–9.2% at 88,340 (9/05: 93,540)Toyota Motor Co.
20.2% at 222,950 (9/05: 178,417)Editors note: All percentages are reported as the change in daily sales rate (DSR) since there were 26 selling days in September 2006 versus 25 selling days in September 2005.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
The other Bob 4:22PM (10/03/2006)
So in other words Toyota and Ford are up and every other manufacturer in the U.S. market is down.
Still, I'd rather have less sales and make more money, which is where GM is headed.
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Dat 8:06PM (10/03/2006)
Mazda is up, right?
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Nels Nelson 4:56PM (10/03/2006)
Ford dumped a load of Tauruses into fleet sales to pump up their car numbers.
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Paul 6:21PM (10/03/2006)
bye bye GM. In China the auto workers make $2/hour including benefits. In the US they make $60. Why would anyone manufacture anything in the USA. Its hopeless for GM.
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k0an 5:16PM (10/03/2006)
The information for Subaru is wrong. It sold more this year but the chart shows a decline.
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sjfjeognbn 5:20PM (10/03/2006)
I will be soooooo glad when Toyota finally becomes #1 so I don't have to hear everyone talk about it anymore!!! Yes, go ahead and put them in the hotseat so they can see what Ford and GM have had to go through the past decade, everyone scrutinizing your every little mistake....when you have that much production volume things are bound to get missed, so we have seen from Toyota's increase in recalls. But because it's Toyota they are all kind of swept under the rug for right now. Yes, let their arrogance get the best of them!!!
As for the idiot that said the remark about the fleet Tauruses....9,000 more vehicles did NOT overinflate their numbers. Their total CAR sales would still have been UP!! I guess if this had been a Toyota Camry it would have been OK??
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Rich 5:22PM (10/03/2006)
GM's drop also included a 26% reduction in rental fleet sales partially offset by a 12% increase in commercial fleet sales.
Actual retail sales YOY are actually up (slightly) at 1400 units.
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Max 5:22PM (10/03/2006)
Ford's sales are up, but only because of the insane incentives they were putting on their cars. They are dumping remaining 2006 inventory right now. The number of sales hides the real problem...which is that they aren't making any money on each unit.
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doug 5:43PM (10/03/2006)
Didn't sales suck in September 2005, with the Employee pricing hangover and the hurricanes??? So any manufacturer that couldn't beat those numbers might have a problem, wouldn't you say?
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John Rettie 5:37PM (10/03/2006)
Using the daily selling rate IS misleading. Over half the population in the US lives in areas where they are allowed to buy cars every day of the month so the number of selling days for 150 million people is the same as the number of days in the month. I don't know why some manufacturers insist on sticking with it and I'm surprised you guys are continuing the antiquated system. It came into being when sales numbers were issued every ten days and then it did make some difference. Now it does not make sense except to cause confustion.
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Lithous 5:38PM (10/03/2006)
"The information for Subaru is wrong. It sold more this year but the chart shows a decline."
Autoblog already stated that they are giving the "real" numbers.
#sold/sales days...
16,128/25 = 620.31 (2006 sales)
16,100/26 = 644.00 (2005 sales)
620.31/644 = .9632 gives 1 - .9632 = .0368 (rounding) gives 3.68% loss
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Lithous 5:40PM (10/03/2006)
Incorrect transfer to "paper"...
16,128/26 = 620.31 (2006 sales)
16,100/25 = 644.00 (2005 sales)
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c a s e 6:31PM (10/03/2006)
Hey - the arrow next to Mazda is misleading. Mazda was up, not down - CORRECTION PLEASE!
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Brian W 5:47PM (10/03/2006)
I think Hyundai's -16% is more of a scary month than Dodges -20%
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Jaguarlover 5:51PM (10/03/2006)
Jaguar should have been shut-down by Ford a long time ago.
mercury and lincoln should have been shut-down more than 6 years ago.
Ford should focus on Ford, Volvo and Aston Martin Only.
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champcarfan 5:52PM (10/03/2006)
Isuzu is up over 16% yea, Isuzu!
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Lithous 6:04PM (10/03/2006)
"However, it was Honda falling off 7.76% that was the big surprise. Apparently, the new Civic's sheen is beginning to wear off and the Accord, as great a mid-size family sedan as it is, is beginning to look staid next to the new Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion and Hyundai Sonata."
All things being equal (other companies with Japanese engineering and blah blah. What company wraps themself in the American flag most on TV commercials. Yet, if GM and Ford dare use the flag after a hundred or more years of supplying vehicles and paying taxes (including real estate tax to probably every state in the union for most of those years)people yell, they should be selling with product merits not the flag.
I think the Honda mark shows that if a company very much like Toyota is not doing nearly as well then it is about the flag waving and not the product. Point blank. That is the main difference between Honda and Toyota isn't it?
Oh, no. That means Hyundai commercials will be on every other minute about their factory here. We're going to have a flag waving contest, aren't we? Either that or Demolition Man was right. Taco Bell will be the only restaurant (and Toyota the only car company). Won't our life be better for it?
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Bob 6:17PM (10/03/2006)
Yeah, I'm extremely surprised to see Hyundai take a hit. I usually follow Hyundai pretty closely and they hardly have any drops period, let alone this size. But it kind of makes sense -- the strikes in South Korea slowed production, sales were up 50% worldwide versus 9/05, so their output was stretched thin, and apparently they made way less Accents and Elantras than demand warranted. The Santa Fe, Sonata and the Azera are selling well, though.
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Bob 6:19PM (10/03/2006)
Lithous, take your medication, and try and make more sense in the morning.
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Aki 9:38PM (10/03/2006)
"Lithous, take your medication, and try and make more sense in the morning."
That made me lol. His posts are hard to follow sometimes.
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