Small/Entry Luxury Car Sales And Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America - January 2011

Rather than disparage Acura for failing to sell more than 160 RLs in January 2011, why not question the 160 humans who acquired an Acura RL in January as to why they chose a freakin' Acura RL over a desirable Infiniti M37 or, dare we say it, even a 2011 Saab 9-5? Seriously, 160 U.S. residents genuinely felt the RL should be their next new car... and they managed to stay awake while completing the paperwork?

Enough harshness. It's been decided that, at this stage of the morning, excessive criticism will lead to over-the-top critiques later in the day. So it's time to be friendly. Acura TSX sales were up 7.5% in January - was the increase due to a wagon influx? And RL sales improved over January 2010, too, by posting a 45.5% increase. Acura TL sales slid 19.8%. Many other Japanese luxury cars struggled last month. At Lexus, the ES, GS, HS, and IS all posted lower sales totals than in January 2010. But Infiniti improved on the M's January 2010 total by five units and the G25/G37 family was up 14.9%. From Sweden (or Denmark, or China, however you see the global automobile industry) sales of the Saab 9-3 jumped 19.3% and sales of the gorgeous 2011 Volvo S60  shot up from 6 to over 1000, a 17,267% increase.

Accustomed to towering volume from the BMW 3-Series, you may think January 2011's 5763 represents a poverty-stricken month for BMW USA dealers. You'd be thinking wrong. 3-Series sales rose 6.4% over January 2010 totals, a sign that BMW may be in for a tremendously strong 2011. The brand as a whole was up nearly 20% in January. 

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Small/Entry Luxury & Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America - December 2010
U.S. New Vehicle Market Share By Brand - January 2011
Large Luxury Car Sales In America - January 2011

Small Car Sales, Midsize Car Sales, Large Car Sales In America - January 2011

Mini sales listed here are not for the total brand. The introduction of the Mini Countryman has meant an increase in overall Mini sales, but the regular Cooper hatchback/convertible/Clubman gang are listed below. For those three, sales fell from 2247 in January 2010 to 2065 in January 2011. Countryman sales will be listed in the Small SUV Sales chart, regardless of what you want to call it.

Mini, of course, is a small volume brand. Include Daimler's smart in a conversation like that. Though low, smart fortwo sales were actually up 28.8% in January 2011, a figure which tells you how bad things were in January 2010. Scion's xd and xB were down 20.9% and 6.3% respectively in January. Other slow sellers include the Volkswagen New Beetle (down 87.5% but advertised in the Superbowl last night) and the Mazda 2, still unable to compete with players like the Nissan Versa, the new 2011 Ford Fiesta, or the soon-to-be-replaced Hyundai Accent.

Among larger midsize models, the Suzuki Kizashi made a push in January (up 12.5% from December) but the handsome Suzuki persists as a mostly forgotten Camry/Accord/Fusion/Sonata alternative. Still a fresh face in the market, the 2011 Buick Regal posted a 23.7% drop from December 2010 - the market as a whole slid, as well - but managed to out-sell the Mazda 6.

And in the largest car category, Lincoln Town Car sales were somehow up 11.7% over January 2010. The Town Car is supposedly extinguished, but it was one of just two Lincolns with improved year-over-year sales last month. Expect to see improved totals from Auburn Hills as the 2011 Chrysler 300 comes on line. Kia Amanti sales dropped by 96.4%. Bring on the Cadenza, would ya please?

Take special note of a multitude of cases where The Good Car Guy has split models which were formerly linked together. No longer are the Camry and Venza grouped, or the Outback and Legacy, or the 300 and Charger. Unfortunately, Toyota Motor Sales USA releases their data on the Corolla and Matrix as though they are one. 

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Top 5 Best-Selling Trucks In America - January 2011

The most successful pickup trucks on sale in America all fared much better in January 2011 than in the same period of 2010. GM full-size truck sales were up 29.1% as Silverado sales rose 23.7%, and the Sierra jumped 46.2%. GM is out of the gate with a lead over Ford's F-Series, but only when the Silverado and Sierra are combined. 

Ford F-Series sales improved too, up 29.6%. Dodge Ram sales were up 22.5% in January. At Toyota, the Tundra improved significantly (55.9%) but is still selling at fairly inconsequential rates compared with General Motors and Ford. Sales of the smaller Tacoma improved by 5.8%.

Light truck sales, a figure which includes many vehicle types besides actual pickup trucks, made up 50.4% of the overall new vehicle market. The six vehicles in the chart below were responsible for 12.2% of all new vehicle sales in the United States in January 2011.

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Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In America - January 2011

Top 10 Best-Selling SUVs In America - January 2011

Starting out the year right where it left off 2010, the $21,695 2011 Honda CR-V was America's best-selling utility vehicle in January 2011. Obviously the CR-V isn't the newest edition to the small SUV arena, nor is it the flashiest or most powerful or most fuel efficient. But becoming as much of an American mainstay as the Toyota Camry or Chevrolet Silverado isn't easy in one of the busiest automotive sectors in North America. Honda's done something right with the CR-V and with their marketing thereof.

There was more up and down movement among America's best-selling SUVs in January than in many months. As you'll notice by the arrows in the status column, only two vehicles maintained their positions. Jeep Grand Cherokee sales were up 129.9% from January 2010 but down nearly 40% from December, a good way to fall from fifth to ninth position. Nissan Rogue sales were up 72% over last January; Chevrolet Traverse sales jumped 50%; and the #1 CR-V increased at a rate of 69% while dropping 29% from December in a market which fell to 819,938, a 28.4% decline.

Of course, none of The Good Car Guy's favourites are on this list. Nevertheless, one such favourite, the Nissan Juke,  theoretically added 3095 to Nissan's small utility vehicle tally as the $20,830 2011 Nissan Rogue seems unaffected by the introduction of a new baby in the family.

Rank	SUV	Status	January 2011	Last Month	January 2010
#1	Honda CR-V	↔	16,339	23,125	9672
#2	Ford Escape	↑	13,973	18,691	10,753
#3	Chevrolet Equinox	↓	12,847	22,764	9513
#4	Toyota RAV4	↔	11,196	17,486	7894
#5	Nissan Rogue	↑	9423	10,363	5483
#6	Ford Edge	↑	8918	11,292	6243
#7	Chevrolet Traverse	↑	8605	10,523	5724
#8	Kia Sorento	↑	8116	9803	7871
#9	Jeep Grand Cherokee	↓	7612	12,573	3311
#10	Toyota Highlander	↓	7507	11,271	4478

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Top 5 Best-Selling Trucks In America - January 2011

Top 10 Best-Selling Cars In America - January 2011

Usually, removing the Toyota Camry from its throne atop America's Best-Selling Cars list is a task reserved for the Honda Accord. In January 2011, however, the role of usurper was filled by the Camry's smaller sibling, the Toyota Corolla. With its Matrix hatchback derivative alongside (Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A, Inc. always lists them together), the Corolla was America's best-selling car in January on sales which were up 20.2%. The introduction of the somewhat refreshed 2011 Toyota Corolla surely provided a boost.

Where others limited incentives, General Motors boosted programs to keep sales on track after a high-volume December. That partially explains the Chevrolet Impala's presence in the fourth spot. The Impala is never a slow seller in the United States, but ascending beyond the Honda Civic and all but two popular midsize sedans is an uncharacteristically strong month for the big Chevy. Malibu sales, like those of the Nissan Altima and Honda Accord, were lower in January 2011 than in January 2010. Subtract the Chevrolet Cobalt's 406 January sales and the Cruze is still out in front of the Hyundai Sonata.

Speaking of Hyundai, don't let it come as a shock to you if/when two Hyundais make this list next month. Superbowl advertising for the 2011 Hyundai Elantra might be just what Hyundai's doctor ordered.

Rank	Car	Status	January 2011	Last Month	January 2010
#1	Toyota Corolla/Matrix	↑	20,581	22,058	17,121
#2	Toyota Camry	↔	18,145	31,223	15,792
#3	Nissan Altima	↑	16,454	23,016	18,636
#4	Chevrolet Impala	↑	15,188	11,411	10,939
#5	Honda Accord	↓	15,012	32,381	20,759
#6	Honda Civic	↓	14,634	28,263	14,693
#7	Ford Fusion	↓	14,346	22,629	12,179
#8	Chevrolet Malibu	↑	14,102	11,520	16,439
#9	Chevrolet Cruze/Cobalt	↑	14,037	11,501	12,962
#10	Hyundai Sonata	↓	13,261	15,964	5306

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Top 10 Best-Selling SUVs In America - January 2011
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New Vehicle Market Share By Brand In America - January 2011

Nearly 22 out of every 100 new vehicles sold in the United States in January 2011 was a General Motors car, truck, SUV, or crossover. Overall, 45.9% of new vehicle sales were attributed to the Detroit Three. This is interesting given that January was a rather successful month for Chrysler Group, Ford Mo Co, and General Motors in America, but it's the Canadian new vehicle market where the Detroit Three grabbed more than 50% of all sales.

Because of the strength of the luxury automobile market in America, luxury players like Mercedes-Benz and BMW are given place in this chart, a place they're not given in the Canadian version. Once you glance at their slices of the pie you'll understand why: together, BMW Group and Daimler AG owned 4.5% of the U.S. auto market in January. All together, German brands (plus Mini, Rolls-Royce, and Bentley) sold 8% of all new vehicles in the States last month. If that seems low to you, take a look back at 2010 when those same brands were 1.1 percentage points down from 8%.

Trucks and cars were a fairly even split in January. 50.39% of all vehicles sold were "light trucks", a vast category that goes way beyond pickup trucks. 75.45% of all vehicles sold in America were built in North America Automotive News Data Center says, this despite the absence of Saturn, Hummer, Pontiac, and historically meaningful Mercury sales.

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New Vehicle Market Share By Brand In Canada - January 2011

Since we've already surveyed the premises and analyzed the situation when laying out total sales by volume for automakers competing in Canada in January 2011, there's not a lot of point in going in-depth here. Here's what should be noted:

Ford Motor Company was 1.4 percentage points ahead of General Motors at the end of 2010. January is starting out on a different note, as GM is out in front and Chrysler Canada is trailing Ford... but not by much.

Honda Canada, Inc. was selling cars like mad at the end of 2010. This may mean the low sales by both Honda and Acura in January are as a result of exceedingly high volume at the end of 2010 - the buyers have already bought. Before you spell the end for Honda in Canada (Hyundai sold nearly twice as many vehicles in January 2011), remember the 2012 Honda Civic is right around the corner. 

Included in the Graph's brown "other" section is Subaru Canada and its 2.1% market share from January, Mitsubishi's 1.7% hold, BMW Group's 1.6%, and Mercedes-Benz/smart's 1.9%.

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Mexico Auto Sales By Brand - 2010 Year End

The Good Car Guy doesn't pretend to be an expert on the automotive marketplace in Mexico, despite 0.008% of his life having been spent there. Moreover, GoodCarBadCar.net will surely be held responsible for any errors by Mexican family members in their Chevy Suburbans. No joke.

Rather than go into detail explaining how Nissan manages to be number one in Mexico when two other North American outposts of Japan's second-largest automaker can't be among the top five, let's stick with some facts. The overall Mexican new vehicle market was worth 820,419 sales in 2010; that's up 8.7% from 2009. 54.4% of the products were imports, according to the Automotive News Data Center. Go back to 2002 and Mexico's new vehicle market was 1,768,908 units strong. In 2006, that figure grew to 2,041,213 and then gradually began shrinking. From 1,099,878 in 2007, Mexicans then acquired only 1,025,449 in 2008. Those numbers dropped again in 2009 before recovering very slightly in 2010. 

Hundreds of thousands of Canadian and American tourists are accustomed to seeing vehicles in Mexico which aren't on sale north of the Rio Grande. These vehicles aren't just available in Peugeot, Renault, and Seat stores but even from General Motors and Ford. If you can't comprehend how necessary this is, how the Mexican auto market must be catered to uniquely, then you haven't compared the various market sizes in North America. Canada, a country of 34 million people, found within itself room for another 1,558,400 new vehicles in 2010, about one new vehicle for every 22 people. Mexicans, on the other hand, only bought one vehicle for every 55 people, and that was in the strong year of 2007. Obviously automakers are dealing with a very different situation in impoverished, truck-loving Mexico.

Here then is a complete rundown of Mexican auto sales by brand for 2010. 

Rank	Automaker	2010	% Change
#1	Nissan	189,518	+21.3
#2	General Motors	155,590	+12.4
#3	Volkswagen	110,332	+13.2
#4	Ford Motor Company	89,425	-1.8
#5	Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep	78,574	-4.6
#6	Toyota	46,769	-10
#7	Honda	37,790	+7.2
#8	Mazda	25,116	+32.8
#9	Renault	18,046	+56.9
#10	Seat	13,380	-14.1
#11	Mitsubishi	12,533	-12.5
#12	Suzuki	7932	+11.8
#13	Mercedes-Benz	6205	+16.2
#14	Peugeot	6195	-14.5
#15	BMW	5732	+3.7
#16	Audi	5490	+12.7
#17	Fiat	2502	-28.7
#18	Mini	2093	+17.2
#19	Acura	1876	-3.4
#20	Isuzu	1337	+37.6
#21	Volvo	1293	+38.3
#22	smart	936	+38.1
#23	Subaru	500	-33.5
#24	Land Rover	499	+15.5
#25	Porsche	440	-17.8
#26	Jaguar	96	-39.6
#27	Bentley	8	-11.1

Source: Automotive News Data Center & Mexican Automotive Manufacturers Association

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Canada Auto Sales By Brand - January 2011

Canada's new automobile market grew by 3.6% in January 2011, but all thanks should be given to large volume automakers like Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Dodge, Hyundai, and Kia. Eight Japanese brands posted lower sales last month than in the same period of 2010. Mercedes-Benz, Canada's most popular luxury brand, was down 7.7%. Jeep, a stalwart of the growth column in the recent past, was down 3.4% and its sibling Chrysler posted a 39.2% decline.

Light trucks made up 62.6% of the overall market, according to Desrosiers Automotive Reports. GM, Ford Motor Company, and Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep out-sold all import nameplates by a scant 263 units, a significant change from January 2010 when imports beat the Detroit Three by 5173 sales. GM's 2011 Chevrolet Cruze performed well with 1471 sales, in addition to 263 Cobalts. The Ford F-Series was wildly popular as sales jumped 26.3%. This 1119-unit increase is responsible for one-third of the overall market's growth over January 2010.

Saab is not returning to any former form of glory. Canadians are loving Dodge with the sort of passion Americans reserve only for Ford or Chevrolet. A February repeat of Honda's horrific January seems unlikely, but if the unlikely were to continue occurring, Kia would likely surpass Honda Canada's sales volumes in the very near future.  And Audi? If a near-victory over BMW isn't a prime North American example of Audi's desires to take over the global luxury car market, nothing is.

You're now up to date with the situation relating to Canadian auto sales by brand in January 2011. Keep checking back for updates later on in the month on Canadian auto market specifics.

Rank	Automaker	January 2011	% Change
#1	Ford	14,012	+25.4
#2	Dodge	10,924	+22.3
#3	Chevrolet	8892	+3.8
#4	Toyota	8161	-1%
#5	Hyundai	6684	+9.9
#6	GMC	4425	+3.9
#7	Nissan	4008	-11.9
#8	Mazda	3688	-11.6
#9	Honda	3467	-38.9
#10	Kia	3049	+26.2
#11	Volkswagen	2861	+22.7
#12	Jeep	2247	-3.4
#13	Subaru	1753	+1.4
#14	Mercedes-Benz	1482	-7.7
#15	Mitsubishi	1412	+29.9
#16	BMW	1215	+16.7
#17	Audi	1140	+29
#18	Buick	734	+43.6
#19	Lexus	728	-23.6
#20	Acura	574	-19.8
#21	Cadillac	490	+10.4
#22	Chrysler	416	-39.2
#23	Suzuki	413	-20
#24	Volvo	397	+0.3
#25	Infiniti	330	-22.9
#26	Lincoln	302	-16.8
#27	Land Rover	173	-1.1
#28	Scion	162	-----
#29	Mini	158	+0.6
#30	Porsche	143	+52.1
#31	smart	82	-6.8
#32	Jaguar	32	-8.6
#33	Saab	11	-----
#34	Maserati	7	+40
#35	Bentley	3	+50

Source: Automakers, Desrosiers Automotive Reports & Automotive News Data Center

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