According to Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds.com Senior Analyst, the Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) for November 2012 is over 15 million. This is the highest SAAR the industry has seen since February 2008.
Caldwell said there should be a strong carryover from November sales into December, and 2012 auto sales should end on a high note.
Comments on November 2012 auto sales:
On CHRYSLER:
Edmunds.com Sr. Analyst Michelle Krebs shares the following perspective on Chrysler’s November sales numbers: “Chrysler’s November sales came in a tad stronger than expected, helped by strong truck sales and higher month-to month and year-ago incentives. The new Ram 1500 pickup truck came out of the chute strong, and Fiat is gaining steam. The same cannot be said of the new Dodge Dart as it appears to be struggling to gain serious traction, with sales falling well below 5,000 units this month.”
ON FORD
Krebs said, “It looked like an iffy experiment to go head-to-head with the Toyota Prius, but the Ford C-Max looks like a hit with just shy of 5,000 sales in November, even though it’s only been on the market for only a couple of months. The Ford F-Series, meanwhile, had more than 50,000 sold for the fourth straight month, and the Focus is hot. Now to be running on all cylinders, Ford needs to crank up production of its bestseller Fusion and fix problems with the Escape, which led to a fourth recall Friday. Lincoln, meantime, has just begun a journey toward luxury car cred that will take years.”
ON GM
Caldwell said, “While the rest of the industry had higher incentive spending in November than in October, GM didn’t. As a result, sales for its headline vehicles like Volt and Silverado showed noticeable decline. This result shows how competitive this industry is and I imagine GM will be very aggressive spenders in December to end the year on a high note.”
ON VW
Krebs said, “Volkswagen continued its oft-sung refrain of best month since 1973. With a 29 percent gain over last November, the beefy year-to-year comparisons will have to come down eventually, but for now Volkswagen is on a roll.”
ON HONDA
Caldwell said, “We figured all along that Hurricane Sandy would have an effect on November sales, and Honda’s results are a prime example. Honda is the most popular brand in the tri-state area, so when life started to return to normal, those car buyers quickly made up for lost time. It was certainly a major factor – along with the continued success of the new Accord – that helped make last month Honda’s biggest November ever.”
ON NISSAN
Caldwell said, “Nissan’s sales success last month was a direct result of its aggressive incentive spending, which jumped 21 percent from October to November. As we’ve seen in the last few years, deal-seekers are no longer waiting for December to jump on end-of-year discounts, so Nissan jumped the competition to make sure their discounts really stood out among the early holiday noise.“
ON TOYOTA
Krebs said, “The storm recovery certainly played into Toyota’s November sales performance. Only Honda sells a larger share of its brand in the New York market. The automaker also has new product and is marketing those products aggressively.”
Below please click on the Automaker to find out more about their November 2012 sales numbers:
Chrysler Group LLC: Chrysler Group LLC Reports November 2012 U.S. Sales Increased 14%; Best November Sales in Five Years
Ford Motor Company: C-MAX Lineup Success Helps Drive Ford’s Small Car Sales to 12-Year High; F-Series Marks Best November Since 2005
General Motors: GM U.S. Sales Increase 3% in November
Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc.: Toyota Motor Sales Outpaces Industry With 17.2% November Sales Increase
Nissan North America: Nissan North America Sets New November Sales Record
Volkswagen of America, Inc.: Volkswagen Reports a 35% Sales Increase Year-to-Date
Kia Motors America: Kia Motors America Announces Best-Ever November Sales And 27th Consecutive Monthly Sales Record
Porsche Cars North America, Inc.: Porsche Reports 71% Increase in Sales, Best Sales Month Ever
American Honda: American Honda Reports All-Time Best November Sales: All-Time Record November for Company and Civic; RDX Fuels Double-Digit Acura Gain
Audi of America, Inc.: Record-setting November sales push Audi to new all-time yearly high
Subaru of America, Inc.: Subaru of America, Inc. Reports Best November Sales In Company History
Mazda North American Operations: Mazda Achieves Best November Sales Since 1994
Mercedes-Benz USA: MBUSA Posts All-Time Sales Record With November Sales Of 32,649
BMW Group U.S.: BMW Group U.S. Reports November 2012 Sales
Hyundai Motor America: Hyundai Motor America Breaks All-Time November Sales Record
Mitsubishi Motors: Mitsubishi Motors Reports Another Big Month For Outlander Sport Sales In November
American Suzuki Motor Corporation: American Suzuki Motor Corporation’s November 2012 Automobile Sales Up 22% Year-Over-Year
