Consumers Give Auto Makers a Boost in April

U.S. vehicle sales increased 3.1% last month compared with April 2001 as improved economic conditions and incentives attracted buyers, auto makers reported Wednesday.

It was the first time this year that sales improved from the same month a year earlier. With more than 5.3 million vehicles sold in the first four months of 2002, industry sales are down just 1.7% from the same period last year.

“We’re coming into a more powerful market than we’ve been looking at,” said David Healy, an analyst with Burnham Securities. “It’s another indication that the car market, and for that matter the economy, is improving.”

In all, auto makers sold more than 1.4 million vehicles last month, compared with more than 1.3 million in April 2001. Truck sales rose 6% to more than 726,000, while car sales edged up 1% to come in above 717,500.

Led by surging truck sales, General Motors Corp. reported a 12.6% sales increase in April from the same month a year ago. GM, the world’s largest auto maker, expects to maintain that momentum as the year progresses.

Sales of GM light trucks rose 24.3% compared with April 2001, while car sales edged up 1.1%. For the year so far, GM’s vehicle sales are down 0.3%.

Among the other major U.S. auto makers, DaimlerChrysler’s Chrysler Group reported sales rose 3% in April compared with the same month last year, while Ford Motor Co.’s sales were down 7.8%.

Chrysler sold 3.8% more cars than it did in April 2001, and light truck sales rose 2.7%. Chrysler’s year-to-date sales are down 5.3%.

Sales of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury cars were 13% lower than those during April 2001, and light truck sales--including pickups, sport utility vehicles, vans and minivans--fell 4.8%. For the first four months of this year, Ford sold 11.7% fewer vehicles than in the same period last year.

Among the major Japanese auto makers, Toyota Motor Corp.’s sales edged up 0.4%, while its totals for the first four months of the year were 3.2% better than last year. Sales at Nissan Motor Corp. rose 15% in April, while American Honda Motor Co. reported a 1.3% increase for the month. Mitsubishi Motors Corp. reported selling 8.5% more vehicles in April than it did in April 2001, boosted by a 16% increase in car sales. It was the best April in the company’s history, Mitsubishi said, and its year-to-date sales are up more than 20%.

Among European auto makers, BMW of North America reported sales rose 15.3% compared with April 2001. Mercedes-Benz USA recorded its best April with a 7.4% increase over April 2001.