August 2010 Sales Report: Chrysler up, Ford and GM down

By Angel Cuala on Sep 2, 2010 in Automobile, United States, World • No comments

August 2010 sales report showed that car sold in the US for Chrysler had a 7 percent sales increase, while rivals Ford and GM are down by 11 percent and 25 percent, respectively. The result was compared to last year’s sales.

In August 2009, General Motors Corporation (GM) sold 245,550 cars and light trucks and went down to 185,105 a year after, resulting to a 25% decrease. The models Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac are that being mentioned.

“Right now we’re not panicking about the trends in the industry,” GM U.S. sales operations vice president Don Johnson, said in a conference call with analysts and reporters.

Mr. Johnson added that “GM stands firmly with its earlier forecast that the industry overall will sell between 11.5 million and 12 million new vehicles this year in the U.S.”

Meanwhile, Ford sold 176,000 vehicles last year but down to 157,327 that resulted to 11% loss in sales, with Ford, Mercury and Lincoln brands affected. Ford‘s total sales did not include Volvo, which the company sold last month.

The company said it now plans to produce about 570,000 cars and trucks in the fourth quarter,

On the contrary, Chrysler Group LLC reported a 7% increase in August sales, to 99,611 vehicles. Chrysler is one of the few car manufacturers that were not affected from the clunkers rebates because its model line includes few small cars, which were big sellers last year.

“Chrysler Group is proud that we have beaten or matched the average industry sales increase for the fifth consecutive month this year and for the calendar year to date,” said Fred Diaz, head of U.S. Sales.

“This is proof positive that we are accomplishing our goals: steady, sustainable growth. We will continue to build on this momentum as we begin production on a stream of new product through the end of this year.” He added.

The sales report from other auto makers should be made available on Wednesday, but were also expected to show reduction due to the effect of the rebate program.