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Home Front Economy
Auto sales tank
2008-10-01
While I may disagree with lotp on some aspects of the present crisis, I do not disagree with her on its menace or magnitude. It is happening, folks. More evidence. It takes time for these forces to reach every part of the economy. Sort of like a tsunami. But it's headed your way. My opinion is no ifs, ands, or buts, its coming and you're the target.



Auto sales, which were weak over the past 11 months, fell off the table last month:

• Ford Motor posted a 34% drop. Their truck and van sales fell 39%, SUV sales plummeted 57% and F-series truck sales dropped 42%.

• Honda reported a 24% decline in sales;

• Toyota U.S. Sept. sales drop 32.3%, light truck sales dropped 38%

• Lexus sales -- Toyota's luxury nameplate -- fell 37.7%;

• Volvo sales slumped 51.8%;

• Porsche tumbled 45%;

• General Motors sales down 15.6% (better than the expectations of -26%)

• Nissan Sales down 37%

• Mercedes-Benz reported sales off -16.4%

• Volkswagen sales for September fell 9.4%;

• Hyundai Motor's U.S. sales fell 25%;

• Kia U.S. sales slide 27.8%

Chrysler report September sales later today

Edmonds.com noted that the last time fewer than 1 million new vehicles were sold in a month was February 1993.
Posted by:Nimble Spemble

#10  Interesting that they have all these sales figures pulled together less than half a day after the end of the month. Suspicious even. It's not their norm:
http://www.forex-brokerage-firms.com/economicindicators/auto-truck-sales.htm
Posted by: Darrell   2008-10-01 20:09  

#9  Sounds like a good time to be in the market for a car. Hmmm, 1995 @ 156k, 1995 @ 124k, & 1999 'toy' @ 66k, & I buy without borrowing.
Posted by: Glenmore   2008-10-01 18:59  

#8  I wonder how used car sales are doing.

My buddy just scored a used Honda Accord; settled with them at 8:30 PM last night (last day of the month so the sales guy's more likely to fold on price just to meet his monthly quota) and got $2000+ off list price. Sales guy's still worried about getting canned, so I don't think used car sales are doing that much better.
Posted by: Raj   2008-10-01 18:33  

#7  Amsn Mike N. It is going to be hard, but it has to happen. There is no way that people are going to continue to purchase cars or trucks at the rates they have been the past several years. I wouldn't buy a new car if you paid me. It is a losing proposition as soon as you drive it off the lot.
Posted by: remoteman   2008-10-01 18:33  

#6  Their are way too many car makers with way too many model competing model lines. The jig is up, it's time for consolidation.
Posted by: Mike N.   2008-10-01 17:38  

#5  Carmakers have been borrowing from future sales for so long - using easy lending schemes and NINJA (no income, no job or assets) loans - that they are finally being forced to pay the piper. This collapse was a long time in coming. This wasn't a subprime bubble or a housing bubble - it was a credit bubble.
Posted by: Zhang Fei   2008-10-01 16:52  

#4  Again, Americans have gotten far to used to living high on borrowed money. Most sales of new autos are completed with a car loan, and that's harder to get lately.

The average car gets traded in at about six years and 70,000 miles. Most people who deferred buying in September can wait another couple of years if they need to.

I wonder how used car sales are doing.
Posted by: Darrell   2008-10-01 16:46  

#3  Rather astounding. CA: June gasoline consumption declined by 7.5 percent from the same month a year ago.
Posted by: ed   2008-10-01 16:38  

#2  Well they have people so freaked out about this financial crisis that they naturally aren't going to be buying cars right now. People don't know if they are going to have a job tomorrow morning the way the news outlets are talking.
Posted by: bigjim-ky   2008-10-01 16:24  

#1  And the gas to go with them.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble   2008-10-01 16:10  

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