Auto sales in September 2016 were expected to dip by roughly 2%, a modest decline that would have continued a trend from the summer in which the U.S. auto industry slows after 2015’s record-breaking results.
In the end, September wasn’t all that bad. U.S. auto sales did, in fact, decline, but only 0.7%, a loss of roughly 10,000 units. Auto sales in August, for perspective, fell by more than 55,000 units, year-over-year.
Nissan was first to report with a meaningful 12% gain at Infiniti and a 4% uptick at Nissan, which reported more than twice as many Titan sales in September 2016 than in September 2015. Sharp losses at Ford were caused by a 23% decline in car sales, a 3% SUV/crossover loss, and a 3% drop in F-Series sales. Toyota, with Scion dying, has combined Toyota/Scion figures.
U.S. Vehicle Sales By Model – September 2016 YTD
Overall, the Toyota trio of brands (now a duo) was up 1.5% in September. A minor loss at General Motors, America’s top-selling manufacturer, was caused by a 4118-unit decline at GMC and a modest downturn at Chevrolet – Buick and Cadillac reported gains.
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One way of identifying a disappointing month for the U.S. auto industry? Look at Jeep as a symbol. Against a long-term trend, Jeep volume declined 3% in September 2016 as Renegade, Compass, Wrangler, and Cherokee sales decreased.
Only a sharp 13% decline at Acura brought American Honda down. Sales at the namesake Honda brand rose 1.5% on strong Fit, CR-V, and HR-V sales.
Mercedes-Benz, with 29,500 sales (vans excluded) was America’s premium brand leader in September; 3699 sales ahead of Lexus.
The Toyota Corolla was America’s best-selling car. The Honda CR-V led all SUVs/crossovers. Ford’s F-Series was the top-selling vehicle and top-selling pickup truck. The sharpest declines were reported by Scion, Fiat, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo, Smart, and Acura, all of which plunged by double-digits. Gains at Jaguar, Bentley, and Maserati were best, although Ram’s 28% leap forward was best among volume brands.
If you don’t wish to see automakers arranged alphabetically, click column headers to sort automakers by September sales, year-over-year change, year-to-date totals, or any other order. Best seller lists for cars, trucks, and SUVs will be added later this afternoon. In the coming days, GCBC will also publish a complete list of year-to-date sales for every single vehicle line, a list which includes brand results. (Check out the 2015 version here.) You can always find historical monthly and yearly sales figures for any brand by clicking the brand name in the table below or by selecting a make (or model) at GCBC’s Sales Stats page.
Click column headers to sort by specific categories. Using the mobile version of GoodCarBadCar? Thumb across the table for full-width visibility or switch to the web version at the bottom of the page, at which point columns will be sortable.
October 2016 • August 2016 • September 2015 • Updated at 5:39 PM AT on 10.03.2016
|
Rank
|
Automaker
|
Sept.
2016 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
%
Change |
Sept.
2016 Market Share |
YTD
Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
#22
|
12,813
|
-12.9%
|
119,727
|
-9.3%
|
0.8%
|
0.9%
|
|
|
#36
|
41
|
-26.8%
|
418
|
-18.2%
|
0.0%
|
0.0%
|
|
|
#20
|
17,617
|
1.6%
|
152,179
|
3.2%
|
1.2%
|
1.2%
|
|
|
#35
|
283
|
155%
|
1475
|
-17.9%
|
0.0%
|
0.0%
|
|
|
#15
|
25,389
|
-4.6%
|
230,133
|
-7.9%
|
1.8%
|
1.8%
|
|
|
#18
|
20,922
|
14.1%
|
169,767
|
1.2%
|
1.5%
|
1.3%
|
|
|
#21
|
15,368
|
3.1%
|
119,286
|
-5.1%
|
1.1%
|
0.9%
|
|
|
#3
|
170,237
|
-0.3%
|
1,531,912
|
-4.0%
|
11.9%
|
11.7%
|
|
|
#19
|
18,797
|
-27.1%
|
186,497
|
-22.4%
|
1.3%
|
1.4%
|
|
|
#12
|
42,935
|
-5.7%
|
394,940
|
1.7%
|
3.0%
|
3.0%
|
|
|
#30
|
2913
|
-30.1%
|
25,099
|
-19.1%
|
0.2%
|
0.2%
|
|
|
#1
|
Ford |
194,647
|
-8.4%
|
1,896,858
|
0.3%
|
13.6%
|
14.5%
|
|
#32
|
1211
|
—
|
2708
|
—
|
0.1%
|
0.0%
|
|
|
#11
|
43,268
|
-8.7%
|
391,432
|
-4.6%
|
3.0%
|
3.0%
|
|
|
#4
|
120,842
|
1.5%
|
1,108,653
|
4.9%
|
8.4%
|
8.5%
|
|
|
#7
|
65,399
|
2.2%
|
584,980
|
1.2%
|
4.6%
|
4.5%
|
|
|
#23
|
11,413
|
11.7%
|
96,775
|
1.3%
|
0.8%
|
0.7%
|
|
|
#31
|
2662
|
168%
|
20,349
|
81.4%
|
0.2%
|
0.2%
|
|
|
#6
|
76,331
|
-2.7%
|
707,106
|
11.6%
|
5.3%
|
5.4%
|
|
|
#10
|
49,220
|
-1.2%
|
491,764
|
3.3%
|
3.4%
|
3.8%
|
|
|
#26
|
5637
|
-3.7%
|
54,391
|
12.4%
|
0.4%
|
0.4%
|
|
|
#14
|
25,801
|
2.0%
|
236,193
|
-4.5%
|
1.8%
|
1.8%
|
|
|
#24
|
8797
|
1.3%
|
80,435
|
8.7%
|
0.6%
|
0.6%
|
|
|
#33
|
1185
|
36.1%
|
8156
|
-2.6%
|
0.1%
|
0.1%
|
|
|
#16
|
24,889
|
-2.8%
|
224,267
|
-7.2%
|
1.7%
|
1.7%
|
|
|
#13
|
32,470
|
3.6%
|
274,360
|
1.6%
|
2.3%
|
2.1%
|
|
|
#29
|
4024
|
-8.8%
|
38,911
|
-13.5%
|
0.3%
|
0.3%
|
|
|
#25
|
7191
|
-0.5%
|
74,351
|
1.5%
|
0.5%
|
0.6%
|
|
|
#5
|
116,384
|
4.3%
|
1,086,249
|
5.8%
|
8.1%
|
8.3%
|
|
|
#28
|
4479
|
1.2%
|
40,246
|
2.4%
|
0.3%
|
0.3%
|
|
|
#9
|
51,866
|
27.5%
|
400,300
|
11.1%
|
3.6%
|
3.1%
|
|
|
#34
|
605
|
-19.3%
|
4044
|
-25.6%
|
0.0%
|
0.0%
|
|
|
#8
|
54,918
|
3.5%
|
446,887
|
4.2%
|
3.8%
|
3.4%
|
|
|
#39
|
Scion °
|
3688
|
-43.3%
|
53,458
|
36.4%
|
0.3%
|
0.4%
|
|
#38
|
Toyota °
|
167,771
|
3.2%
|
1,532,768
|
-3.0%
|
11.7%
|
11.7%
|
|
#2
|
171,459
|
1.4%
|
1,586,226
|
-2.1%
|
12.0%
|
12.1%
|
|
|
#17
|
24,112
|
-7.8%
|
231,268
|
-12.5%
|
1.7%
|
1.8%
|
|
|
#27
|
5615
|
1.6%
|
58,532
|
26.2%
|
0.4%
|
0.5%
|
|
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|
|
249,795
|
-0.6%
|
2,212,397
|
-3.8%
|
17.4%
|
16.9%
|
|
|
|
203,444
|
-8.1%
|
1,977,293
|
0.6%
|
14.2%
|
15.1%
|
|
|
|
197,260
|
1.5%
|
1,822,419
|
-2.4% |
13.8%
|
13.9%
|
|
|
|
192,883
|
-0.9%
|
1,714,360
|
3.6%
|
13.4%
|
13.1%
|
|
|
|
133,655
|
-0.1%
|
1,228,380
|
3.3% |
9.3%
|
9.4%
|
|
|
|
127,797
|
4.9%
|
1,183,024
|
5.4%
|
8.9%
|
9.0%
|
|
|
|
115,830
|
1.8%
|
1,079,452
|
2.4%
|
8.1%
|
8.2%
|
|
|
|
46,491
|
-3.2%
|
425,168
|
-6.1%
|
3.2%
|
3.2%
|
|
|
|
33,075 |
3.1%
|
278,404
|
1.0%
|
2.3%
|
2.1%
|
|
|
|
29,413
|
-5.2%
|
269,044
|
-8.8%
|
2.1%
|
2.1%
|
|
|
|
8299
|
21.2%
|
74,740
|
25.4% |
0.6%
|
0.6%
|
|
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|
—
|
Total
|
1,434,483
|
-0.7%
|
13,101,286
|
0.3%
|
—
|
—
|
Source: Automakers & ANDC
Red font indicates declining year-over-year volume
* Does not include Lamborghini
^ Excluding Sprinter: +1.7% to 29,500 in September; -0.3% to 249,204 YTD.
* includes BMW & Mini
° Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Ram = FCA
WSJ estimate for Tesla: +64% to 3600 in September; +278% to 26,900 YTD.
estimate for Tesla: +7% to 2250 in September; +6% to 19,975 YTD.
†Industry total takes into account Automotive News figures/estimates for brands such as Tesla and other low-volume, high-priced manufacturers.
RECOMMENDED READING
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – October 2016
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – August 2016
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – 2015 Year End
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – September 2015
Top 30 Best-Selling Vehicles In America – September 2016