U.S. Auto Sales Results: December And Calendar Year 2014

Auto sales in the United States grew nearly 11% in December 2014, a fitting ending to a year of impressive growth for the overall auto industry. The biggest leaps forward in December were achieved by three volume brands: Chrysler, Kia, and Ram. Scion and Cadillac continued to spiral. Volkswagen reported a modest increase for the third consecutive year in comparison with what was a disappointing fourth-quarter in 2013.

• Ford led all brands in U.S. sales in 2014

• GM is the top-selling manufacturer with its four brands

• Maserati’s 171% year-over-year improvement led all automakers in 2014

• Jeep and Ram combined for 303,190 more sales in 2014 than in 2013

The market supported more than 16 million sales for the first time 2007 with strength rising most particularly in the SUV/crossover sector, but also from top-selling cars. Toyota’s Camry, the best-selling car in America, climbed to 428,606 sales. The Nissan Altima set an annual sales record. The Honda Accord reached a seven-year high.

As usual, premium makes fared well in the month of December most especially. BMW ended the year 9347 sales ahead of Mercedes-Benz. Lexus, with its smaller but expanding lineup, was was 19,002 sales back of Mercedes-Benz.

AutomakerDec. 2014Dec. 2013% Change20142013 % ChangeAcura 17,80915,75113.1%167,843165,4361.5%Alfa Romeo 67——91——Audi 19,23817,01313.1%182,011158,06115.2%BMW 41,52637,38911.1%339,738309,2809.8%Buick 20,35715,37932.4%228,963205,50911.4%Cadillac 16,15018,165-11.1%170,750182,543-6.5%Chevrolet 184,938153,49320.5%2,033,4421,947,1254.4%Chrysler 30,93020,270 52.6%308,785302,4922.1%Dodge 46,57847,689 -2.3%574,155596,343-3.7%Fiat 3,7843,745 1.0%46,12143,2366.7%Ford 209,679 208,6080.5% 2,376,8412,403,542 -1.1%GMC 53,03843,12023.0%501,853450,90111.3%Honda 119,472119,504-0.01% 1,373,0291,359,8761.0%Hyundai 64,507 63,0052.4% 725,718720,7830.7%Infiniti 12,00713,232-9.3%117,330116,4550.8%Jaguar 1,6831,544 9.0%15,77316,952-7.0%Jeep 63,27453,275 18.8%692,348490,45441.2%Kia 45,58733,631 35.6%580,234535,1798.4%Land Rover 5,7545,764 -0.2%51,46550,0102.9%Lexus 39,87934,75714.7%311,389273,84713.7%Lincoln 9,6907,98421.4%94,47481,69415.6%Maserati 1,4121,053 34.1%12,9434,768171%Mazda 24,808 22,9648.0%305,801283,9467.7%Mercedes-Benz 34,00933,007 3.0% 330,391 312,534 5.7% Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 3,2882,828 16.3% 25,745 21,816 18.0% Total Mercedes-Benz 37,297 35,8354.1%356,136334,3506.5%Mini 6,6156,5920.3%56,11266,502-15.6%Mitsubishi 6,5456,423 1.9%77,64362,22724.8%Nissan 105,31196,5269.1%1,269,5651,131,96512.2%Porsche 3,2753,246 0.9%47,00742,32311.1%Ram 48,62836,028 35.0%469,139367,84327.5%Scion 3,8174,323-11.7%58,00968,321-15.1%Smart 97385513.8%10,4539,26412.8%Subaru 49,92340,17224.3%513,693424,68321.0%Suzuki — — — — 5,946 -100%Toyota 171,361151,76312.9% 2,004,373 1,893,8745.8%Volkswagen 34,05834,0150.1%366,970407,704-10.0%Volvo 4,9204,888 0.7%56,36661,233-7.9%————— ——BMW-Mini 48,14143,9819.5%395,850375,7825.3%Chrysler Group/FCA US 193,261161,007 20.0%2,090,6391,800,368 16.1%Daimler38,27036,6904.3%366,589 343,6146.7%Ford Motor Company 219,369 216,5921.3% 2,471,315 2,485,236-0.6%General Motors 274,483230,15719.3%2,935,0082,786,0785.3%Honda Motor Company137,281135,2551.5%1,540,872 1,525,3121.0%Hyundai-Kia 110,094 96,636 13.9% 1,305,952 1,255,962 4.0%Jaguar-Land Rover 7,4377,308 1.8%67,238 66,9620.4%Nissan Motor Company 117,318109,7586.9%1,386,8951,248,42011.1%Toyota Motor Corporation 215,057190,84312.7%2,373,771 2,236,0426.2%Volkswagen Group * 56,983 54,716 4.1% 598,991 615,736 -2.7%———————Industry Total1,507,9281,359,62110.9% 16,531,07015,603,6785.9%

* Volkswagen Group includes sales figures for Audi, Bentley, Porsche, and Volkswagen brands

** Industry total includes Automotive News sales estimates for ultra-low-volume automakers and their 2200-unit (December) Tesla sales estimate.

Timothy Cain is the founder of GoodCarBadCar.net, which obsesses over the free and frequent publication of U.S. and Canadian auto sales figures.