In a market that continues to be ruled by pickups, Camry has nearly caught the number two pickup in the market, General Motors Co.’s (NYSE: GM) Chevy Silverado. The pickup’s sales are in trouble. They were higher by only 0.6% to 43,519 in June, and they have actually fallen by 0.8% this year to 240,679. The sluggish activity has not only allowed the Camry to gain on it, Silverado sales have fallen well behind those of market leader, the Ford Motor Co. (NYSE F) F-Series, which has sold 365,825 units in the first six months.
Toyota has been clever in its management of the Camry name plate. The lowest end version has a base price of $22,425. However, the Camry Hybrid with most of the accessories Toyota offers can reach over $35,000. The high-end model has a larger engine. In addition, Toyota has added some of the most recent technology available on new cars, including “blind spot monitoring” and relatively expensive navigation and sound systems.
The Camry almost certainly will not have its top position challenged this year. Four models from other car companies have posted sales just below 200,000 — the Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (NYSE: HMC) Accord, Honda Civic, Ford Fusion and Nissan Altima. Among those, only one matched the Accord’s June sales — the Fusion. But the Ford model has only sold 165,498 units this year.
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