General Motors Falls 15.8% for September
It really could have been a lot worse. Or, as GM puts it, “”GM outpace(d) major competitors this month… total September sales were down 16 percent compared to an industry decline anticipated to exceed 20 percent.” Yes, well, there’s this little matter of “Employee Discount” pricing inflating sales and eating into margins. And fleets. Let’s not forget the fleets. Anyway, while metal was moved, everyone took a hit for the team; all eight GM brands posted significant losses. Chevrolet was down 11.2 percent; Cadillac was down 39.1 percent; Buick dropped 20.5 percent; Pontiac fell 26 percent, Saturn skidded 10.8 percent, and Saab continued its erosion by 27 percent for the month. A handful of models made headway. The Chevrolet Malibu rose a staggering (and suspicious) 62 percent (fleets!). The Impala increased 17.1 percent. The Pontiac Vibe co-production (with Toyota) jumped some 90 percent, to 5703 units. AS for gas – elctric non-sequitors, “For the month, a total of 1,957 hybrid vehicles were delivered as GM hybrids continue to gain in popularity in the marketplace.” Remind me again how many billions GM spent on its two-mode hybrid system?
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Although I like to see GM not being the worst of the worst, the big winners on their sales charts seem to be Impala and Malibu, which makes me think that fleets (not necessarily daily rental) cushioned most of the blow. With respect to the CTS, this may be more a case of GM blowing out the old version last year causing a spike in sales. Other than maybe pickups and Vibe sales... yikes!
"Remind me again how many billions GM spent on its two-mode hybrid system?" It just doesn't make any difference at this point. Historic cost is irrelevant to bankrupt companies.
8766 Trailblazers? Who the hell bought them???