Auto Sales Plummet: Mid-April sales of North...

Auto Sales Plummet: Mid-April sales of North American-made cars and trucks plunged 17.7% compared to the same period last year, when consumers flocked to showrooms to take advantage of incentives, auto makers said. Incentives were in effect during the period this year, but they weren’t nearly as generous as the deals offered last year. The 10 major car and truck makers with plants in Noth America reported that they sold an average of 34,071 vehicles a day during the April 11-20 period this year, compared to a daily average of 41,380 last year. Car sales were down 19.1% and truck sales were off 15.1%. For the entire year, domestic car and truck sales were down 3.5%, with car sales falling 4.3% and truck sales down 2%.

VEHICLE SALES

April 11-20, 1990 % change year to year GM* 138,965 -15.9 Ford* 98,629 -19.0 Chrysler* 39,085 -36.2 Honda U.S. 12,084 +6.7 Mitsubishi U.S. 1,143 +63.8 Nissan U.S.* 6,517 +31.5 Toyota U.S. 9,280 +55.3 Mazda U.S. 571 -55.7 Subaru U.S. 108 ** TOTAL 306,637 -17.7

* Includes light truck sales.

** No comparison possible.

There were nine selling days in the selling period this year and last year.