Compared to January and February 2009 statistics, it looks like new-car buyers are starting to trickle back into showrooms.
Good news for General Motors, who sold twice as many vehicles in March than in February, while Hyundai is still on a roll with a 25% increase over last year. Mercedes-Benz and Audi also racked up better numbers compared to the same period last year as well as the previous month.
March was also a turnaround month for Lexus, MINI, Porsche, Saab and Volvo who published negative results in February, but managed to post noticeable sales gains last month. In addition, March was the best month ever for Mitsubishi's Canadian operations.
On the other hand, bigger brands such as Ford, Chrysler, Honda, Mazda, Toyota and Volkswagen are still struggling and must rethink their sales strategies.
Source: Desrosiers Automotive Report
Good news for General Motors, who sold twice as many vehicles in March than in February, while Hyundai is still on a roll with a 25% increase over last year. Mercedes-Benz and Audi also racked up better numbers compared to the same period last year as well as the previous month.
March was also a turnaround month for Lexus, MINI, Porsche, Saab and Volvo who published negative results in February, but managed to post noticeable sales gains last month. In addition, March was the best month ever for Mitsubishi's Canadian operations.
On the other hand, bigger brands such as Ford, Chrysler, Honda, Mazda, Toyota and Volkswagen are still struggling and must rethink their sales strategies.
| March | Current Month | YTD | ||||
| 2009 | 2008 | 09/08 | 2009 | 2008 | 09/08 | |
| Acura | 1211 | 2088 | -42.0% | 3300 | 5013 | -34.2% |
| Audi | 979 | 781 | 25.4% | 1994 | 1934 | 3.1% |
| BMW | 1711 | 1584 | 8.0% | 3781 | 3835 | -1.4% |
| Chrysler | 15846 | 21602 | -26.6% | 38939 | 54770 | -28.9% |
| Ford | 17021 | 20050 | -15.1% | 39776 | 46777 | -15.0% |
| General Motors | 24695 | 29972 | -17.6% | 50168 | 82685 | -39.3% |
| Honda | 11359 | 14197 | -20.0% | 23870 | 35363 | -32.5% |
| Hyundai | 8818 | 7029 | 25.5% | 20337 | 16229 | 25.3% |
| Infiniti | 581 | 828 | -29.8% | 1402 | 1882 | -25.5% |
| Jaguar | 57 | 135 | -57.8% | 132 | 212 | -37.7% |
| Kia | 3555 | 3157 | 12.6% | 7601 | 7160 | 6.2% |
| Land Rover | 171 | 234 | -26.9% | 466 | 632 | -26.3% |
| Lexus | 1363 | 1126 | 21.0% | 2666 | 2854 | -6.6% |
| Mazda | 7060 | 9055 | -22.0% | 15876 | 19597 | -19.0% |
| Mercedes-Benz | 2181 | 1731 | 26.0% | 4778 | 3995 | 19.6% |
| MINI | 307 | 296 | 3.7% | 543 | 697 | -22.1% |
| Mitsubishi | 1983 | 1821 | 8.9% | 4536 | 4301 | 5.5% |
| Nissan | 7024 | 7513 | -6.5% | 15179 | 16930 | -10.3% |
| Porsche | 172 | 157 | 9.6% | 364 | 406 | -10.3% |
| Saab | 172 | 79 | 117.7% | 263 | 243 | 8.2% |
| smart | 212 | 324 | -34.6% | 443 | 754 | -41.2% |
| Subaru | 1878 | 1639 | 14.6% | 4327 | 4009 | 7.9% |
| Suzuki | 948 | 1107 | -14.4% | 2278 | 2388 | -4.6% |
| Toyota | 14538 | 19523 | -25.5% | 33640 | 41952 | -19.8% |
| Volkswagen | 3156 | 3531 | -10.6% | 6770 | 7765 | -12.8% |
| Volvo | 491 | 465 | 5.6% | 1140 | 1423 | -19.9% |
| Light Vehicle Sales | 127489 | 150024 | -15.0% | 284569 | 363806 | -21.8% |
| Passenger Car | 65554 | 80125 | -18.2% | 142083 | 190058 | -25.2% |
| Light Truck | 61935 | 69899 | -11.4% | 142486 | 173748 | -18.0% |
| GM/Ford/Chrysler Nameplates | 57562 | 71624 | -19.6% | 128883 | 184232 | -30.0% |
| Import Nameplates | 69927 | 78400 | -10.8% | 155686 | 179574 | -13.3% |
| Sales History | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 09/08 |
| January | 79.2 | 86.2 | 91.2 | 102.8 | 76.9 | -25.3% |
| February | 102.7 | 97.4 | 97.0 | 111.0 | 80.2 | -27.7% |
| March | 144.5 | 151.3 | 150.7 | 150.0 | 127.5 | -15.0% |
| April | 163.2 | 155.1 | 169.0 | 175.2 | ||
| May | 157.6 | 168.2 | 185.5 | 184.5 | ||
| June | 161.4 | 157.3 | 169.2 | 159.5 | ||
| July | 154.8 | 141.6 | 142.4 | 149.5 | ||
| August | 142.5 | 153.6 | 158.4 | 147.0 | ||
| September | 124.2 | 135.8 | 131.8 | 134.1 | ||
| October | 115.2 | 118.4 | 120.9 | 122.7 | ||
| November | 120.2 | 123.5 | 117.3 | 105.2 | ||
| December | 117.8 | 126.3 | 119.9 | 94.4 | ||
| Full Year | 1583.3 | 1614.7 | 1653.4 | 1636.0 | ||
| Note: Sales figures above are in thousands. | ||||||