Striking autoworkers, rising interest rates and higher price tags did absolutely nothing to deter consumers wanting to buy or lease new vehicles in the third quarter of this year.
New vehicle sales rose 18.8% in the third stanza with General Motors, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and Kia leading the charge. Actually, aside from Stellantis, which fell 1.3%, every automaker was up during the period just ended. Jeep, Ram and Dodge were all down during the quarter.
GM had a banner third quarter, sales rising 21% over the year-ago results.
GM saw a big jump during the third quarter: 21%, including a 16% rise in retail sales. Chevrolet enjoyed a 21%, Cadillac rose 6%, Buick was up 54% and GMC clocked in with a 19% increase, according to the company. The company noted its EV sales were up 28% compared to the second quarter.
Ford will report its results tomorrow.
Big moves from foreign makers
Foreign automakers boasted big upticks as well with Toyota up 12.2% overall. The Toyota division rose 12.4% while Lexus rose 10.9%. Third quarter electrified vehicle sales totaled 184,666, representing 31.3 percent of total year-to-date sales.
“With the introduction of several electrified vehicles including the all-new Toyota Grand Highlander hybrid, Toyota Corolla Cross hybrid, Toyota Prius, and the Lexus RX plug-in hybrid, customers now have 26 Toyota and Lexus electrified vehicle options to choose from, the most among any automaker,” said Jack Hollis, executive vice president, Sales, TMNA.
“We anticipate continued strong sales momentum as we close out 2023 as dealer stock improves and key new products like the fourth generation Toyota Tacoma and Lexus TX and TX hybrid hit showroom floors.”
The industry saw a nice increase for the third stanza of the year, sales rising 18.8%.
Toyota’s Japanese rival Honda saw is sales jump an amazing 52.7% for the quarter — and this was despite problems with its supply chain. The Honda brand went up 50.9% with the CR-V and Accord hybrids proved to be very popular. Acura, Honda’s luxury unit, rode sales of the new Integra and its SUVs, to a 69.3% jump for the quarter.
“With strong demand for both cars and trucks and sales of electrified vehicles totaling almost a quarter of our sales, Honda and Acura have tremendous momentum heading into the last quarter of 2023,” said Mamadou Diallo, senior vice president of Auto Sales at American Honda Motor Co. Inc.
South Koreans enjoy gains
Hyundai Motor America reported total September sales of 68,961 units, a 16% increase compared with September 2022. That helped set the stage for a 9% increase year-over-year for the quarter. Hyundai also set new Q3 total and retail sales records for Ioniq 5, Santa Fe PHEV, Santa Fe HEV, Tucson PHEV, Tucson HEV and Santa Cruz. For the quarter, Hyundai fleet sales remained at 10%.
Kia America was right behind its corporate cousin, setting a new Q3 record for sales and surpassing sales of 210,000 for the second quarter in a row, the company noted.
“With the best-ever performance through Q3, 14 straight months of year-over-year growth, and sales of our SUV and electrified offerings continuing to gain market share, Kia is ahead of the curve and delivering the vehicles customers want, particularly in the highly competitive segments,” said Eric Watson, vice president, sales operations, Kia America. “As we enter the fourth quarter, we are confident our mix of world class models will continue to attract new customers and keep current ones coming back.”
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