Cars and Drivers

Chevrolet Drags GM Sales to a Disappointing August

Chevrolet-Impala
courtesy of General Motors
General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) posted total August sales of 272,423 vehicles, down 1.2% year-over-year. Retail sales slipped 3.8%. Total sales for the first eight months of 2014 totaled 1.98 million units.

The July forecast from Edmunds.com called for sales of nearly 269,000 vehicles, down 2.5% year-over-year. GM’s CFO said last month that the company’s better-than-expected performance in the first half of the year may lead to a cutback in expectations. He appears to have been right.

Total Chevrolet deliveries are down 1% year-over-year and Corvette sales were up 306%. The Chevy Cruze posted a drop of 2% in August, but year-to-date sales are up 3.6%. For the first eight months of the year, total sales are up 2.8%, including discontinued models. Chevy sales are up 1.7% and Cadillac sales are down 4.7% for the first eight months of the year. GMC brand sales were up 10.4% in July and are up 8.2% for the year.

GM’s average transaction price in August hit an all-time record of $33,750, up $500 per unit from July and up $2,900 over August 2013.

The company’s new Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon have received about 28,000 and 14,000 dealer orders, respectively, and vehicles are expected to reach showrooms in the fall.

Cadillac sales were down 17.8% year-over-year in August and have dipped 4.7% year-to-date. GM touts sales jumps of 89% for its Escalade SUV and 64% for the Escalade ESV, but together the two accounted for just 4,500 sales in August.

GMC Sierra pickups sold 19,847 units in August, up 10.2%, and total Sierra sales year-to-date are up 6.8%. Sales of the Savana SUV rose nearly 71% in August and are up more than 100% year-to-date on a very low base.

GM’s stock price was down about 0.2% in Wednesday morning trading, at $34.72 in a 52-week range of $31.70 to $41.85.

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