GM Has Approx 5-Month Supply Of Camaro, Malibu, Silverado; 788K Units In Stock

[Perian]

The Wall Street Journal

December 4, 2012

Article Quotes:

Detroit auto makers are piling up big stocks of passenger cars at dealers despite brisk new-vehicle sales in the U.S.—a problem that executives vowed to avoid since their painful downturn three years ago.

General Motors ended November with enough Malibu sedans and Camaro sports cars to last more than five months at the current rate of sales. Ford Motor Co. had more than four months' worth of Fiesta subcompacts and Chrysler Group LLC had a nearly six month stock of its 2013 Dodge Dart.

But Detroit auto makers didn't expect rivals recuperating from a tsunami and floods to go toe to toe. GM started December with 788,194 unsold cars and trucks, and warned it won't meet a target of finishing the month with a U.S. inventory of less than 670,000 new vehicles. GM executives said they were caught off guard by the heavy incentives offered by others and will idle two plants for an additional week in December. It may take more steps as needed.

GM also miscalculated demand for its pickup trucks. The industry norm for U.S. auto makers is between 60 days and 70 days of sales in inventory. GM had 138 days worth of Chevrolet Silverados at the start of this month. In passenger cars, its Chevrolet Cruze inventory jumped to 64,390 vehicles or 96 days. One of the two plants that GM will idle this month produces the Cruze.

"We thought the economy would have been further along at this point but as we look into December and 2013, we will get a tailwind from housing which benefits not only autos but the entire economy," said GM spokesman Jim Cain. "The one thing we won't do is commit the sins of the past and lose our discipline around rental cars and incentives. Our competitors may be doing it, but we have come too far to go backward and do something that may hurt our brands."

Full article at link.

[Perian]

Looking to buy a new vehicle?

The end of this month could be very interesting.

[90CamaroRS]

Not a sign of a bad market for the automakers, but just a bad economy in general that doesn't seem to be getting any better.

[lam]

Not a sign of a bad market for the automakers, but just a bad economy in general that doesn't seem to be getting any better.

The economy has nothing about inventory....... about element of self-control ......

[Ambalanche]

The economy has nothing about inventory....... about element of self-control ......

Yes it does! The economy dictates wheather people will buy that new vehicle because they WANT it, or because they need it! If they don't need it, they can't afford to buy it!...

[63GrandSport001]

I am glad that GM instead of getting stuck in an incentive war to chase market share is going to adjust supply down to better be in line with demand.

[69project]

While not encouraging it could be worse. Most of the GM models mentioned have been around a while and are probably prone to bigger inventories. The Malibu has not been the big hitter GM wanted so that's what happens. Not sure about Ford and Dodge. They either guessed wrong on styling or the fact that gas is below $3 a gallon in some places is causing folks to skip small cars. Hard to say but overall I think most automakers reported an increase in sales so...unless every model has stagnant inventories I am not that concerned.

[bballr4567]

The economy has nothing about inventory....... about element of self-control ......

I think Ed stated a while back that the plants plan for inventory 4-6 months in advance. Its not like just turning up and down the dial.

Not to mention, the Camaro had one of its worsts months in a long while and is coming off two slow months. Could be time for GM to start allowing a little dealing on them.

[63GrandSport001]

Yes it does! The economy dictates wheather people will buy that new vehicle because they WANT it, or because they need it! If they don't need it, they can't afford to buy it!...

You can not make the statement that the economy isn't getting better and use the example of the auto market. You do know that auto sales continue to grow, if auto sales stayed the same or were in decline then I could agree with you. At current you have no facts to back up that statement as to why inventory has gotten a bit bloated. Iam actually has some merits to his statement, considering that the auto market in the US is growing. Though I would think that its more of the Japanese automakers doing better then they had expected.

[FanOfDurant]

They can try to pin the tail on the economy all they want but I'm not buying it. I'm taking the tail and pinning it on the product. Our local news last night ran a story about how our dealers are experiencing record sales. They had Ford and Kia on the program. Ford and Kia have better product at the moment. Chevrolet does not. I'm not saying they won't and the sky is falling, they just don't right now. The Cruze while stellar a few years back is getting stale and the Camaro won't sell much in the winter anyway. The Malibu is about DOA and you all know how I feel about the Silverado. The refreshed Traverse however has won me over although I'd much prefer an Explorer/Durango/Grand Cherokee type TrailBlazer. I think we're still buying one though. So I'll contribute one sale this winter. They really did do a nice job with the refresh there. I also just love the next gen Impala. What a looker... It will take a completely new product cycle for Chevrolet to get it's legs back in solid shape. I mark the new Impala as that start.

[Dr. Show-Me]

People buy when they have the confidence to buy that new car or truck. You get a job, or a better job, or an assured long term job, you then feel its time to buy that new car. If you aren't sure, you wait....

[swagled]

I can still find unsold 2011 trucks and Impalas within a few hundred miles of me. GM may be boasting about their low incentives for now, but this bulging pipeline is getting harder to hide. There need to be longer factory idles, or cash on the hood. One or the other is going to happen.

[Novak454]

Too many cars are too many cars - poor strategic planning. And there are offices full of people who are supposed to be on top of this stuff... some residal of 'old GM'.
On the plus side, my 2005 Vibe is looking to be replaced, might be good timing for me!

[Neanderthal]

There's a missing link in here somewhere...

Now, if I can pick up a new 2012 Impala LT for say 17 grand come 30 December...

[swagled]

I'm sure the dam will break, as new trucks and Impalas reach dealers. The prior model year gets relegated to the back lot and they will be sold close to par with used cars.