Chart Of The Day: Auto Brand Market Share In America In January 2015

Timothy Cain
by Timothy Cain

With 17.6% of the U.S. market in January 2015, General Motors increased its market share from January 2014’s 16.9% but slid back from December’s 18.2%.

GM car sales slid 7% to account for just 32% of the automaker’s January volume. Light trucks at General Motors – including a pickup range that grew its sales by 42% – jumped 36%.

The big loser? That’d be the Koreans. Hyundai and Kia combined to own 8% of the U.S. market in January 2014, a figure which fell to 7.2% in January 2015. New vehicle sales rose 14% in America last month, year-over-year. Hyundai volume rose to a record-setting January level of 82,804 sales, but the 1% gain severely trailed the industry. Kia sales were up a little more than 3%, although the brand’s car division slid 3% on falling Optima and Cadenza volume.

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

Timothy Cain
Timothy Cain

More by Timothy Cain

Comments
Join the conversation
6 of 46 comments
  • Sector 5 Sector 5 on Feb 07, 2015

    That 4 banger Hyundai effect hitting Fusion?

  • Big Al from Oz Big Al from Oz on Feb 07, 2015

    Hyundai and Kia need some true off roaders and even pickups. If they can achieve that their sales numbers could easily surpass Nissan. I had a 2004 Kia Sorento, it was a BOF 4x4 with a hi-lo transfer case. the new Sorento as nice as it is isn't an off roader. Sort of the way Nissan went with the Pathfinder, another vehicle reduced. Hyundai/Kia to have a pickup would mean to manufacture in the US. This would be out of the question due to numbers needed to be sold to justify billions spent on setting up a plant. I don't think the Trans Pacific Trade agreement will alter the impost placed on importing a light truck from Korea. It seems the US doesn't want to alter it's stance with Asian nations in comparison to EU nations regarding the "25% impost" on light trucks. So Hyundai/Kia must come up with other ideas to bolster their numbers. Maybe venture into performance style vehicles? I don't know if this will work either. They could produce a large 4x4 SUV with a V8 or turbo V6. They are in a bit of a jam.

    • Heavy handle Heavy handle on Feb 07, 2015

      They used to offer true off-roaders in North America, but those didn't sell as well as the crossovers that replaced them. Given Nissan and Toyota's struggles to get more than single-digit pickup market share, I doubt Hyundai would bother. It would only make sense if they could use the same platform in other markets, but nobody else wants US-style pickups.

  • Big Al from Oz Big Al from Oz on Feb 08, 2015

    @heavyhandle, Nissan and Toyota didn't invest into their pickups. That is full size and mid size. Any company would of had those issues. I think Nissan's problem with investing in pickups can be directed at the Renault part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Even the D40 when it came out was okay, but the pickup became very dated quickly in the styling department. The Taco faired better. I do hope Toyota and Nissan have learnt their lesson, don't take a market for granted.

    • Heavy handle Heavy handle on Feb 08, 2015

      Big Al, Nissan's problem with the Titan is that it wasn't a very good product. The Toyota full-sizer is reliable, even though it doesn't offer enough engine and chassis choices. I have a friend who owns a shop that specializes in full-sized pickups and truck fleets, and he tells me that the Titan has been bad news from day one and hasn't really improved. Every once in a while, one of his customers will buy a few at a really cheap price, with the promise that all the problems have been fixed. It's all bunk, and he ends-up up having to fix countless electrical and mechanical issues, with minimal support from Nissan. I think that Nissan did learn a bit of American country wisdom from their pickup fiasco: "don't throw good money after bad." The new Titan is an NV2500 frame with a third-party motor, so it's a freebie in automotive terms.

  • BrunoT BrunoT on Feb 08, 2015

    Hard to believe Subaru outsells VW group.

Next