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Toyota Widens Lead Over GM in Big California Market
Mac Gordon
thecarconnection.com
Release of the latest new-vehicle sales number by states from R.L. Polk has affirmed a disconcerting trend for the U.S. Big Three. As the numbers show, California, the nation's number-one market with 1.95 million new-car and truck sales last year, continued to reduce GM, Ford and Chrysler Group shares with increased penetration for Toyota, Nissan and Honda. GM's decrease in retail sales only, excluding fleet and wholesale deliveries, was its fifth in a row and strengthened the first-place finish of Toyota, Lexus and Scion over GM.
Toyota Motor's share of California retail sales in 2003 rose to 20.8 percent, from 19.7 percent the year before. GM dropped to 17.1 percent from 17.8 percent; Ford Motor from 15.5 percent to 14.8 percent; Honda, including Acura, advanced to 13.0 percent from 12.6 percent; and Nissan/Infiniti went from 5.6 percent to 6.7 percent, almost catching up to Chrysler Group's 6.8 percent, a dip from 7.8 percent.
Numerically, the gap between Toyota Motor and GM sales widened to nearly 59,000 units...
That turning things around for GM will not be an easy thing is readily conceded by the general manager of Wes Rydell's GM dealer group in the San Fernando Valley north of L.A., where GM's share of retail flirts with 13 percent. Acknowledging the pro-Japanese tilt of consumers despite GM's flock of new and improved products, Rydell associate Gus Garcia once said in an interview, "The number-one Ford and the number-oneToyota dealers are out there, just north and northeast of L.A. It'll be a uphill climb for GM to bounce back, but we won't stop trying."
Full Story Here
Mac Gordon
thecarconnection.com
Release of the latest new-vehicle sales number by states from R.L. Polk has affirmed a disconcerting trend for the U.S. Big Three. As the numbers show, California, the nation's number-one market with 1.95 million new-car and truck sales last year, continued to reduce GM, Ford and Chrysler Group shares with increased penetration for Toyota, Nissan and Honda. GM's decrease in retail sales only, excluding fleet and wholesale deliveries, was its fifth in a row and strengthened the first-place finish of Toyota, Lexus and Scion over GM.
Toyota Motor's share of California retail sales in 2003 rose to 20.8 percent, from 19.7 percent the year before. GM dropped to 17.1 percent from 17.8 percent; Ford Motor from 15.5 percent to 14.8 percent; Honda, including Acura, advanced to 13.0 percent from 12.6 percent; and Nissan/Infiniti went from 5.6 percent to 6.7 percent, almost catching up to Chrysler Group's 6.8 percent, a dip from 7.8 percent.
Numerically, the gap between Toyota Motor and GM sales widened to nearly 59,000 units...
That turning things around for GM will not be an easy thing is readily conceded by the general manager of Wes Rydell's GM dealer group in the San Fernando Valley north of L.A., where GM's share of retail flirts with 13 percent. Acknowledging the pro-Japanese tilt of consumers despite GM's flock of new and improved products, Rydell associate Gus Garcia once said in an interview, "The number-one Ford and the number-oneToyota dealers are out there, just north and northeast of L.A. It'll be a uphill climb for GM to bounce back, but we won't stop trying."
Full Story Here
