It’s that time of the month again. U.S. market sales figures are in for February 2009 and we’ve got all the details. Highlights include a spectacular month for Ford, which claimed the number one spot, and a lackluster month for Toyota, which was hammered by bad press and recalls.
The Americans
General Motors reported total February sales of 141,951 units, an increase of 11.5 percent over the same month in 2009. The company’s four remaining brands — Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC — were up 32 percent compared to February 2009. [Sales PDF]
Sales of Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles climbed 43 percent for a total of 142,285 units — Ford brand sales shot up 46 percent, Lincoln increased 19 percent and Mercury rose 24 percent. [Sales PDF]
Chrysler reported U.S. sales for February of 84,449 units, a slight increase versus the same time period last year (84,050 units). Chrysler brand sales rose 9 percent, Jeep climbed 6 percent, and Dodge was up 8 percent. Sales of vehicles under the Ram division declined a whopping 31 percent. [Sales PDF]
The Asians
Toyota Group sales totaled 100,027, down 8.7 percent from the year-ago month. The Toyota division declined 10.3 percent, while the Lexus brand saw an increase of 4.5 percent. Toyota division sales include Scion, which was down 18.2 percent on its own. [Sales PDF]
Honda fared better, reporting an increase of 12.7 percent when compared to February 2009. Sales totaled 80,671 units. The Honda Division posted February sales of 71,732, an increase of 12.2 percent. Acura Division sales increased 16.7 percent to 8,939. [Sales GIF]
Nissan said it sold 70,189 units in February 2010, an increase of 29.4 percent. Nissan brand vehicles posted sales of 63,148 units in February compared with 47,890 units sold in February the previous year, a 31.9 percent increase. Infiniti sales for February 2010 were 7,041 units, up 10.7 percent from the 6,359 units sold in the same month a year earlier. [Sales PDF]
Mazda sales increased 4.0 percent for a total of 17,054 vehicles. Leading the pack was the new Mazda3, with sales of 8,215 units. Mazda Canada sold 4,929 units, up 6.0 percent compared to last February, while Mazda Motor de Mexico reported sales of 1,722 units, down 3.0 percent. [Sales XLS]
Subaru continues to report impressive sales gains, up 38 percent from Feb 2009. The automaker says it sold 18,098 units in February 2010, setting a new record for the company’s best February ever. The Subaru Outback once again more than doubled its sales from the previous month, resulting in a 159-percent sales increase. The Outback had sales of 6,189 units in February 2010 versus 2,389 units in February 2009. [Sales Chart]
Mitsubishi announced February 2010 sales of 4,019 vehicles, a decrease of 10.4 percent over February 2009. “We intend to build upon this success to enjoy an improved sales increase next month,” said CEO Shinichi Kurihara.
Suzuki’s numbers were among the worst in the industry, falling 61 percent to just 1,375 units. [Sales Chart]
Hyundai announced February sales of 34,004 units, up 11 percent versus February 2009. “Our sales gains in February were driven by strong consumer response to new products like the Tucson, which was up 102 percent, and the all-new U.S.-built Sonata, which was just launched this month and has already driven a 58 percent sales increase,” said Dave Zuchowski, Hyundai Motor America’s vice president of national sales. [Sales Chart]
Kia announced the brand’s best February sales ever of 24,052 units, an increase of 2.3-percent. Kia recently celebrated the grand opening of its first U.S.-based manufacturing plant in West Point, Georgia. [Sales PDF]
The Europeans
Daimler reported sales of 15,827 vehicles, an increase of 1.4 percent over February 2009. The Mercedes-Benz division reported February sales of 14,199 vehicles, a 4.7 percent improvement. The new 9th generation E-Class continued its strong momentum with sales of 4,043 – up 92.2% over February 2009. The Smart division fared much worse. Smart USA sales plunged by 68.8 percent, from 1,415 down to 442 units. [Sales Chart]
The BMW Group reported 17,971 unit sales, an increase of 13.7 percent. The BMW brand was up 16.3 percent to 15,100 units, while MINI was up just 1.6 percent for a total of 2,871 sales. Results were driven by the BMW X5, up 75.5 percent, and the X6, increasing 97.6 percent. [Sales PDF]
Volkswagen reported February 2010 sales of 18,116 total units, representing a 32.6 percent increase over February 2009. Tiguan sales rose 94 percent, while GTI deliveries shot up 167 percent. “Our newer models such as Tiguan, Routan, CC, and all-new GTI continue to gain awareness and consideration with consumers,” said Mark Barnes, Chief Operating Officer. [Sales Chart]
Audi had a strong month, with sales rising 33.6 percent to 6,216 vehicles. Audi’s bread-and-butter model line – the A4/S4 range – turned in a solid month with sales increasing 20.8 percent from February 2009. Also worth noting is a steep jump in A5 sales — 108 percent — due to the introduction of the new convertible model. Sales of the A3 also increased considerably, by 126 percent. However, the A3 still remains relatively low volume, with just 434 units sold. [Sales Chart]
Jaguar- Land Rover sold 2,793 units, an 11 percent increase from February 2009. Jaguar brand sales declined 4 percent to 761 units, while Land Rover sales were up 18 percent to 2,032 vehicles.
