• by Karl Greenberg , December 2, 2008

The CEOs of Detroit's automakers may not be the only executives who should take a dollar-a-year salary in suffrage. In November, the auto industry that last year was still on fire was reduced to embers as the disaster on Wall Street wreaked havoc on the real economy, taking all the automakers down.

General Motors posted a 41% decline in new-vehicle deliveries last month--with GM car sales of 58,786, off 44%; and truck sales of 96,091, down 39%. The steep decline in vehicle sales was largely due to a significant drop in the market's retail demand compared with last year, and continuing economic uncertainty that has negatively impacted consumer confidence.

"In November, we saw the continuation of the dramatic decline in volume for the industry. Every manufacturer is posting awful numbers, and we are no exception," said Mark LaNeve, vice president, GM North America Vehicle Sales, Service and Marketing, in a release. "We have outstanding products in the market, so it is particularly frustrating when economic uncertainty takes our customers out of the market."

He said about 34% fewer vehicles were sold this November in the industry than a year ago. "The consumer is scared and sitting on the sideline. We need appropriate economic stimulus to get the consumer back in the game." GM is running its Red Tag Event through Jan. 5.

Ford sales were off 30% versus the month last year. Jim Farley, Ford group VP/marketing and communications, said the company will launch an "unprecedented" number of vehicles in 2009 and 2010.

The company says it plans to produce 430,000 vehicles in the first quarter of 2009 versus 692,000 vehicles in the first quarter this year.

"We believe the economy will continue to weaken in 2009," said Farley. "Our near-term production plan reflects this view, as we continue to align capacity with customer demand." By division, Ford sales were off 30%, Lincoln sales were off 8.3% and Mercury sales were down 41.4%. Overall, Ford sales this year are off nearly 20% through October.

Even hybrids didn't help Toyota this year, as the Torrance, Calif. automaker posted a 33.9% decline in November sales, with the Toyota division off 33.8% and Lexus off 34.7%. The Prius, Toyota's flagship hybrid car, saw sales drop 48.3% last month, and nearly 10% through the year. Camry sales were off nearly 29%, sales of the Yaris subcompact were off 16.6%, and Corolla sales were down 12.8%, per the company.

Honda's sales of 76,233 vehicles last month constitute a 31.6% decline versus November 2007, with sales off 5.8% year-to-date. Honda division sales were down 30% and Honda's Acura luxury division saw a 38.9% decline. Even Honda's Fit, which saw big gains this year, was off 8.4% last month.

Among luxury brands, Mercedes-Benz was off over 38% last month, and 8.6% year-to-date. BMW sales were off 36.1% last month, bringing year-to-date sales for BMW brand down 12.3%.