American car sales surged in the first quarter. The COVID-19 pandemic had decimated sales, particularly from April of last year through the third quarter. Unfortunately, just as sales have rebounded, some manufacturers have had to halt production because of a shortage of semiconductors used in many cars.
The Toyota brand sold the most vehicles in America in the first quarter. The 517,017 units sold were up 18%. The brand’s success is based largely on small, fuel-efficient sedans, which makes it different from some rivals that favor larger, heavier vehicles.
The car brand with the next best sales in the first quarter was Ford, with 492,271 units sold. This was driven mostly by the best-selling vehicle in America, the full-size F-Series pickup. Ford posted a particularly strong quarter financially because of North American sales. However, CEO Jim Farley said, “The semiconductor shortage and the impact to production will get worse before it gets better.” Second-quarter production could drop by as much as 50%, he added.
The third best-selling brand in America is the largest at General Motors. Chevrolet posted unit sales of 463,913. Like the Ford brand, its best-selling vehicle is a full-size pickup, the Silverado. Also like Ford, it has followed the U.S. car buyer’s taste for crossovers, pickups and sport utility vehicles, which dominate its range of products.
Honda ranks fourth in first-quarter unit sales by car brand at 309,203. Although it has crossovers and SUVs among its models, like Toyota it also sells a large number of small cars that are inexpensive and get high gas mileage.
Brand dominance in the industry is such that moving into one of the top spots based on U.S. sales has been extremely hard. Japanese brands did it in the 1970s and 1980s. No brands have been able to since then.
Click here to see read about the slowest-selling new car.
Want to Retire Early? Start Here (Sponsor)
Want retirement to come a few years earlier than you’d planned? Or are you ready to retire now, but want an extra set of eyes on your finances?
Now you can speak with up to 3 financial experts in your area for FREE. By simply clicking here you can begin to match with financial professionals who can help you build your plan to retire early. And the best part? The first conversation with them is free.
Click here to match with up to 3 financial pros who would be excited to help you make financial decisions.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.