Sonic in short supply as Chevy closing in on all-time sales record

It's been a good year for Chevrolet. The company marked its 100th anniversary in 2011 and is set to beat its all-time sales record. That's not a bad way to celebrate if you ask us, particularly just a couple of years removed from the bankruptcy of its parent company. The automaker has sold 4.8 million units worldwide through November, and December isn't looking to slacken the pace. Chevrolet managed to carve out nearly half a percentage point of additional global market share this year. What's more, sixty percent of the company's vehicles are now sold outside of the U.S. in a bid to move Chevy more into the global arena. That's thanks in part to growth in markets like China, Vietnam, Europe and South Korea as well as solid sales in familiar stomping grounds like South America.

Here in the States, Chevrolet is slotted behind first-place Ford in total consumer market share. Even so, vehicles like the Chevrolet Sonic may soon improve the automaker's fortunes. General Motors says Chevrolet dealers have just a 17-day supply of the new B-segment bruiser.