automotive

Deals Drive Hot Auto Sales In July

Summer deals to clear out 2015 models helped lure shoppers to showrooms in July, which resulted in sales records for several automakers.

Fiat Chrysler, Ford and General Motors reported sales figures that marked their best July since before the recession.

Fiat Chrysler and General Motors both saw 6% sales gains over last July, while Ford's U.S. sales rose 5%, marking the automaker’s best July since 2006. Honda, Nissan and Kia all saw 8% gains. Volkswagen and BMW sales both rose 2%. Toyota's sales were flat. Porsche Cars North America sales rose 10% over July 2014. Mazda is the anomaly, with sales falling 7%. But the automaker is reporting a slight year-over-year increase in total sales through July.

SUVs were among the hottest sellers, with sales of Nissan's new Rogue jumping 51% and GM's Buick Encore climbing 68%. Jeep sales, which were up 23%, made up 41% of Fiat Chrysler’s total number of vehicles sold during the month. Wrangler, Cherokee, Patriot and Compass all posted individual July records.

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SUVs and crossovers now comprise more than a third of the entire U.S. new light vehicle market, their highest share in at least six years and higher than any other vehicle configuration, so those manufacturers with a wide offering of these vehicles will continue to benefit, says Tom Libby, manager, loyalty solutions and industry analysis, IHS Automotive.

“The story is similar in the highly profitable pickup category — pickup deliveries now account for more 13% of all new vehicle deliveries, their highest share in at least six years,” Libby says. “OEMs with a broad pickup portfolio, including Ford, FCA, Toyota and GM, stand to gain from this trend, both in share and profitability. “

Zero-percent financing deals on the Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion, Nissan Altima and other sedans helped steer buyers to those models. Altima sales rose 27% and set a new July record. Fusion achieves best-ever July result with 40% of Ford’s car segment,up 4.9% from year-ago.

Ford’s other car models posted year-over-year declines in July except for the Mustang, which was up 29%. However, Ford’s U.S. market share ended the month at an estimated 14.4%, down from the 14.5% year-ago result, according to WardsAuto data.

“We continue seeing even stronger demand for our newest products, especially F-150, Explorer, Edge, Mustang and Transit,” says Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president, U.S. marketing, sales and service in a conference call with analysts and media.

A 24% rise in Chevrolet pickup, van and SUV sales helped make the month GM’s best July since 2007.

“We feel very good about our truck strategy heading into the late summer and fall, when those segments usually heat up,” says Kurt McNeil, GM’s U.S. vice president of sales operations, in a release.

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