Trucks, SUVs and EVs continue to drive sales increases for several brands.
Automakers on Oct. 3 began reporting September and third quarter sales results, which were up across the board.
GM
Trucks and new SUVs drove sales and share gains for General Motors in the third quarter.
GM said in the quarter ending Sept. 30, it sold 674,336 vehicles, a 21% total sales increase and 16% retail sales increase year-over-year.
All brands saw growth: Chevrolet sales were up 21%, Cadillac up 6%, Buick up 54% and GMC up 19%.
GM said its full-size and midsize pickups have seen their best sales through the first nine months of the year since 2018. Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra sales are up 29%.
GM’s small SUVs also sold well, selling 103,479 Chevrolet Trax and Trailblazer and Buick Envista and Encore units in the third quarter---combining for 44% of the segment retail share.
The company’s EV sales were up 28% compared to the second quarter due to strong demand and increasing production, GM said. Among the brand’s offerings are the Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV, Blazer EV and Silverado EV WT, which made its first deliveries to fleet customers in September; Cadillac LYRIQ; and GMC Hummer EV pickup and SUV, which sold 1,167 units in the third quarter.
Ford
Ford posted gains across its portfolio of gas, electric and hybrid vehicle lines in the third quarter with F-Series expanding its lead as America’s No. 1 selling truck, followed by record electric and hybrid vehicle sales and strong commercial Transit van sales.
Year-to-date, Ford has been America’s best-selling brand.
Ford F-Series sales rose 13.4% over last year on sales of 190,477 trucks. Year-to-date, F-Series sales totaled 573,370 trucks, outselling the second place Silverado by 169,949 trucks.
Ford overall Q3 truck sales, including pickups and vans, are up 15.3% over last year on sales of 275,554 vehicles. Big gains came from the all-new Super Duty pickups (up 17.6%), Maverick (up 83.4%) and Transit (up 28.3%).
Ford was the No. 1 selling truck manufacturer again in Q3 and year-to-date. With 825,179 pickups and vans sold through September of this year, Ford has outsold GM’s pickups and vans by approximately 64,000 vehicles.
Ford’s Q3 EV sales were up 14.8% on best ever sales of 20,962 vehicles. Much of this gain came on strong Mustang Mach-E sales, up 42.5% for the quarter and best since its debut in 2021. In the month of September, Mach-E sales achieved sales of 5,872, a new record and a year-over-year gain of 153% for the month.
E-Transit was the No. 1 selling electric van with its best ever quarterly sales results of 2,617, an 89.8% increase. F-150 Lightning is expected to produce sales increases in Q4, as capacity actions at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center are realized. In September, Ford’s overall electric vehicle sales were up 65%.
Ford hybrid sales, led by F-150 and Maverick hybrid trucks, posted Q3 sales of 34,861 vehicles---up 41.4% over last year. F-150 Hybrid sales expanded 46.9% on sales of 12,311 trucks. Maverick Hybrid now represents 56.5% of all Maverick trucks sold. Q3 Maverick sales totaled 23,931 trucks, an increase of 83.4% over last year. Escape Hybrid and plug-in hybrid sales are overwhelmingly selling on pre-sold customer orders.
Lincoln closed the quarter up on the strength of Corsair, Nautilus and Navigator. While Aviator sales were impacted due to the 360-degree camera recall, parts are starting to arrive at retail stores for new customer vehicles. Navigator Q3 sales expanded 46% on sales of 4,527 SUVs, while sales of the new Lincoln Corsair produced an increase of 25.9% for the quarter. Nautilus also realized strong gains with a 32.4% increase over Q3 last year.
Stellantis
FCA US LLC reported sales of 380,563 vehicles in the third quarter for 2023. Overall, total U.S. sales for the third quarter decreased 1% versus the same period last year.
Chrysler brand was up 96% versus the same quarter last year, with the Chrysler Pacifica up 120% in total U.S. sales in that period. Chrysler Pacifica Plug-in Hybrid was up 329% in total U.S. sales over the same period last year. The Chrysler Pacifica Plug-in Hybrid accounted for 23% (8,949 units) of total Pacifica sales in the third quarter and ranks No. 3 in the U.S. among the best-selling plug-in hybrids.
Total U.S. sales of the Jeep Wrangler 4xe and the Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe, which went on sale in Q3 2022, are up 31% and 2,198%, respectively, versus the same period last year. Jeep Wrangler 4xe accounted for 42% (17,662 units) of total Wrangler sales in the second quarter. Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe accounted for 17% (9,722 units) of total Grand Cherokee sales in the second quarter.
Jeep Grand Cherokee posted total U.S. sales gains over the same quarter last year, up 52%. The Grand Wagoneer increased 22% in total U.S sales versus the same quarter last year.
Total U.S. sales of the Ram ProMaster van were up 34% versus the same period last year. Additionally, the Ram brand's commercial fleet channel's total U.S. sales increased 19% versus the same period last year.
Toyota
Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) reported U.S. September sales of 203,904 vehicles, up 13.9% on a volume basis and up 9.5% on a daily selling rate (DSR) basis versus the same month a year ago. September sales of EVs totaled 64,298, representing 31.5% of total monthly sales.
For the third quarter of 2023, TMNA reported U.S. sales of 590,296 vehicles, up 12.2% on a volume basis and up 10.8% on a DSR basis. Third quarter electrified vehicle sales totaled 184,666, representing 31.3% of total year-to-date sales.
Abby Andrews