California car sales running on empty

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Everything’s bigger in California — including the slump in new car sales.

Auto dealers in the not-so-Golden State have seen sales of new cars and light trucks plummet by more than 18% in the first half of the year, according to figures from the California New Car Dealers Assn. That’s compared with a nationwide drop of 10%. Not counting sales to corporate and government fleets, California dealers had sold 634,577 cars, SUVs, pickup and minivans through June, versus 779,778 in the same period last year.

The association says the state’s dubious distinction as one of the epicenters of the current housing crisis gets most of the blame for the slide. Homeowners who are having trouble paying their mortgages aren’t spending much time kicking tires on dealer lots.

The state is also feeling the same effects of high gas prices that are sinking auto sales around the country. Four-dollar gas dries up dollars that otherwise could be used for buying a car. It also drives consumers to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, and there just aren’t enough of those to go around. (Just ask anyone who’s tried to buy a Toyota Prius lately.)

Here are a few other tidbits from the dealers association report:

• Toyota/Scion was the top-selling brand in the state, with a 22% market share, followed by Honda (12%) and Ford (11%). Another Japanese brand, Mitsubishi, came in last with a share of less than 1%.
• Domestic brands account for about 34% of new vehicle sales in California. Nationally, the Detroit Three capture 48% of sales.
• The top-selling models in the state were (in order) the Toyota Camry, the Honda Civic, the Toyota Corolla/Matrix, the Honda Accord and the Toyota Prius.
• The Ford F-series and Chevy Silverado were the top-selling full-sized pickups, easily fending off a challenge from the Toyota Tundra.
• Cars (as opposed to light trucks) have accounted for almost 60% of new vehicle sales in California, compared with around 54% nationwide.

The automakers are expected to report July new car sales on Friday. Analyst Michelle Krebs of Santa Monica-based Edmunds.com is expecting another ‘dismal’ month.

-- Martin Zimmerman