2011 Pony Car And Other Vehicle Sales Numbers

Chevy has become the pony car king.

The Chevrolet Camaro is the 2011 pony car king, beating out the Ford
Mustang and Dodge Challenger in total sales. Camaro sales were up 8.2
percent, just under the industry average. Meanwhile, Mustang sales
fell 4.8 percent and Dodge Challenger sales grew 7.1 percent.

If you combined all of the pony cars, the all-new segment, with
198,221 units sold, would be the 18th largest brand in America, a mere
331 vehicles fewer than Lexus.

NoOp Comment: And for years Detroit execs underfunded their pony cars
or thought it was better to change the formula (remember the Ford
Probe?). Dumb asses! Just goes to show when you have a winning/
proven formula, you only improve upon it, you F' it up or abandon it.

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American pickups continue to rule.

There is little doubt that American pickup buyers believe the best
pickups are from American carmakers. Ford Motor Co. sold an incredible
584,917 pickups, General Motors Co. sold 564,300 (Chevy Silverados and
GMC Sierras), and Ram sold 244,763. (If you add the 20,088 Chevy
Avalanches to the mix, Ford outsold GM by a mere 529 pickups.)

More important, Detroit's Big Three had big gains in pickup sales,
while Toyota Tundra sales fell 11.4 percent and Nissan Titan sales
dropped 6.4 percent. Combined, Toyota and Nissan Motor Co. sold
104,902 full-size trucks for the year. Ford and Chevy sold that many
by the end of February. It took Ram a few more months to hit that
goal.

NoOp Comment: I thought once the Asians entered the big-truck market,
Detroit would once again get destroyed in sales and lose. But I give
Detroit HUGE kudos. They fought back like their life depended on it
(it did), and they have kicked Asian ass!

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The Luxo Market.

By now, everyone knows that BMW beat Mercedes-Benz for the top luxury
spot. We're going to hear that all year long. But I've been more
surprised at the lackluster performance of Ford's luxury brand,
Lincoln.

When Ford's premium brand Mercury was discontinued, I thought that it
would help Lincoln. Premium customers would switch gears and start
buying from Lincoln's lineup. But that just wasn't the case in 2011.
Lincoln's sales were flat for the year, down a half of a percent. All
told, it sold 85,643 vehicles. By comparison, the Chrysler 200 sold
86,987 units.

Interestingly, Lincoln will show off the MKZ concept at the Detroit
auto show on Tuesday. That car promises racy curves and a vision of
the brand down the road. Hopefully, it can deliver and help revive the
brand.

NoOp Comment: Could someone please get Lincoln to lose the asinine
alphabet names and switch to something that inspires. The
MKwhogivesa**** hasn't worked. Who the freak can remember all those
three character names? I'll bet even their owners simply say, I drive
a Lincoln truck, Lincoln sedan or it's an MKsomethingorother.

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A Focus on sales.

While Ford topped 2 million vehicle sales for its brand in 2011, the
first time since 2007, the all-new Ford Focus did not enjoy the same
boon. I expected the compact Focus to do better than a total of
175,717 units — a year-over-year increase of 1.6 percent.

The Volkswagen Jetta outsold the Focus, with 177,358. I still like
Ford's approach with the new Focus, which is quality over quantity.
Head to head, I think the Focus is much better than the Jetta, whose
sales skyrocketed 54 percent in 2011. But the VW is cheaper, and
that's why it's selling. While many carmakers have said that "cheap
and cheerful" vehicles are no longer part of the mix, VW is proving
otherwise.

One way Ford hopes to bolster Focus support is by bringing in a much
sportier ST version, which will be on display at the Detroit show.
Packing 247 horsepower with its 2-liter turbocharged engine, the ST,
when it arrives at the end of 2012, is going to be a thrill ride - and
could boost sales numbers in the future.

NoOp Comment: Another case of Ford building the better product (see
Camaro vs Mustang for another), and getting beat. But I guess in the
entry-level market, cheaper wins.

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Sporty brand consumers like four doors.

Porsche cars are phenomenal. They really are. But it's the four-door
versions that sell for the elite German brand.

All told, Porsche sold 29,023 vehicles last year. But the bulk of
those sales were the four-door Panamera and the Cayenne, which are 68
percent of Porsche's total sales.

Of course, the cars are great, but people want to be able to use them
in more than one way. Having four doors provides that versatility. It
also means that when Maserati comes out with its Detroit-built SUV, it
will instantly become a best-seller (for the brand). Take a look at
the concept version at the Detroit show.

NoOp Comment: I'm sorry, but if I ever buy a pickup, it'll have but
two doors. (I think the 4-door versions look silly.) But, then,
someone would have to offer a truck with a manual transmission (with a
gas-powered V8) before I'd ever consider buying one.

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Fun with numbers.

The Ford Ranger, which was discontinued in December, outsold the Ford
Mustang by 552 units. (My theory as to how this could happen is
everyone who was worried about not ever having the chance to buy a
Ranger scooped them all up in December.)

NoOp Comment: Yet another case of Detroit losing the original
formula. People bought "mini" trucks because they were mini, not
because they were damn near the same size (and price) as a full-size.

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Minivans got bigger, barely.

No battle was closer than the one for the top-selling minivan title.
But the Toyota Sienna pulled it out, selling 111,429 minivans. Dodge's
Caravan pulled in a close second with 110,862 minivans sold. The Honda
Odyssey hit the 107,068 mark and the Chrysler Town & Country saw sales
drop nearly 13 percent to 94,320 units.

Minivans sales grew slightly, just 2.3 percent, and all of the gains
were made by foreign carmakers. Chrysler and its Dodge division are
the only American builders left in the minivan market, a segment they
once ruled.

Lots of people don't think minivans have a future at all. Ford and GM
no longer offer minivans, opting instead for crossovers. Other
carmakers have followed suit, which is one reason no one has plans to
show off the next swagger wagon at the Detroit show. But they are
wrong. Nothing has more utility, offers more comfort and can haul more
people comfortably than a minivan. The leader may change, but the
segment is going to be around a long while.

NoOp Comment: Really, Detroit? You're giving this market away? Wake
up and smell the LONG-TERM sales numbers. You guys can compete, and
win in this market too, if you try. But you won't win, if you run
away.

Patrick