Five Highlights from November two thousand fifteen U.S. Auto Sales
Automakers are close to setting an all-time record for annual auto sales in the United States. While Thanksgiving and the ensuing cold traditionally make November a slower month—total light-duty vehicle sales reached 1.31 million, versus May’s peak of 1.63 million—there are enough weeks left in December to potentially end the year above the 17.35-million mark set in 2000. Most automakers witnessed only modest gains versus a year earlier, with the exception of Mazda (up seven percent), Hyundai (12 percent), Jaguar Land Rover (55 percent), and Volvo (91 percent). We imagine Ford may be having 2nd thoughts about selling the Premier Automotive Group.
Volvo Hits Eight-Year Record
© Provided by Car and Driver 2016-Volvo-XC90-T6-PLACEMENT
Volvo’s turbochargers (and superchargers) are beginning to whip up some boost. The company’s six thousand nine hundred two sales equaled the best November in eight years. The XC90 was Volvo’s largest seller at two thousand two hundred thirty six units, while the XC60 at two thousand seventy seven was up twenty six percent. The S80 almost tripled to four hundred forty nine cars, but with numbers like those, Volvo still has a long way to climb. The S80’s replacement, the two thousand seventeen S90, just made its debut but won’t reach dealerships until early summer.
© Provided by Car and Driver Volkswagen Eos convertible
We can’t not mention Volkswagen, can we? Despite a late September stop-sale that blocked all Two.0-liter diesel models, Volkswagen finished October vapid. But November, which compelled dealers to block extra cars, exposed the true wounds. Total sales dropped twenty five percent to 23,882 cars. If we add back Volkswagen’s usual 25-percent TDI share, it should have at least matched last November’s 31,726 cars. Every model suffered severe double-digit declines, except four that shot up: Eos (8 percent), GTI (14 percent), Tiguan (88 percent), and e-Golf (300 percent). The Golf and Passat were the worst, down sixty four and sixty percent. Elsewhere in the VW Group, Audi reported its 59th consecutive monthly record, but sales weren’t as high as they should have been given that eight percent of last November’s sales went to TDI models. Porsche, with only the Cayenne Diesel, can’t indeed blame the diesel crisis for its 5-percent loss.
Honda Didn’t Score Well, Either
© Provided by Car and Driver 2015-Acura-TLX-SH-AWD-PLACEMENT
Truly, it’s Acura’s fault. The luxury division, despite a 7-percent year-to-date build up, bombed in November with a 10-percent decline to 12,244 cars, mitigated only by a 7-percent bump for the fresh RDX compact SUV. The TLX sedan was down thirty percent and the flagship RLX sold only one hundred twenty copies (down forty seven percent). Even the bestselling MDX was off by twenty two percent to four thousand ninety two cars. Things went better at Honda, with Accord (up one percent), Civic (9 percent), and the fresh Pilot (Nineteen percent) holding up the fort. But the CR-V (down twenty percent) and Fit (down fifty three percent) had a disappointing month. The absence of a Ridgeline pickup, the slow death of the Insight and Civic hybrids, plus a sabbatical for the Accord hybrid, has hurt sales. Yet Honda’s hybrid recluse, the CR-Z, leaped up twenty six percent. Go figure that one out.
Hyundai Put Up its Best November
© Provided by Car and Driver 2016-Hyundai-Tucson-Limited-PLACEMENT
Over at the other H, there was a 12-percent rise marking Hyundai’s best-ever November, with 60,007 cars sold. The weirdo three-door Veloster soared seventy percent (don’t buyers know the B-pillars are misaligned?) to two thousand two hundred four cars, while the handsomer Tucson leaped fifty five percent (6906 cars). Among the more bread-and-butter models were the Elantra (up twenty six percent) and Accent (up forty four percent). The infrequently seen Azera was up all of one percent.
Fiat-Chrysler Best in fifteen Years
© Provided by Car and Driver two thousand fourteen Jeep Cherokee Two.4L Limited
Fiat-Chrysler’s 175,974 sales and 3-percent year-over-year increase doesn’t seem like much, except it was the automaker’s (well, Chrysler’s, anyway) best November since the industry’s record-breaker from 2000. If you overlook Fiat, which resumes to haul down total sales, and get past the powerless month for Dodge (down eleven percent), it’s Jeep, Jeep, and more Jeep. The Renegade’s seven thousand three hundred forty five sales are flamy hot, and every Jeep was up in November. The bestselling Cherokee, at 17,426, was up by only three percent, while the aging Compass (up nineteen percent) and Patriot (11 percent) proceed to shock us given that there are newer deals in town. Jeep’s momentum is likely to proceed, but Fiat-Chrysler indeed needs to work on the Fiat side of the business.