September Pickup Sales

Looks like GM finally shifted their truck sales into 2nd gear.

Ridgeline beats Titan by ONE unit!

Will the Colorado and or Canyon replace any of these trucks in the top nine in the coming months?

I think they'll take off like wild-fire... hopefully not literally. Too bad we have to wait a year for the little D-Max.

Related.....

Chrysler beats Toyota in September Sales



According to information just released, Chrysler Group sold more cars and trucks than Toyota, including Lexus and Scion.

Based on the data received at this time, Chrysler is the No. 3 automaker for the month.

Chrysler sold 169,890 cars and trucks in September, an improvement of 19% over September 2013. That not only beat analysts’ estimates (again), but marks the company’s best September since 2005 and the third-best September of the 21st Century. Only Septembers 2000 and 2005 had higher volumes.

The Chrysler, Jeep, Ram Truck, and Fiat brands all advanced in September, led by Jeep’s 47% increase. Last month was Jeep’s best September ever.

“Continued consumer demand for our new Chrysler 200 mid-size sedan, our Jeep models, and the Ram pickup truck helped Chrysler Group achieve a 19% sales increase in September and our 54th-consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth,” said Reid Bigland, Head of U.S. Sales.

The Chrysler 200, Jeep Compass, Jeep Patriot, Jeep Wrangler, and Ram pickup all set new September sales records. The Town & Country minivan had its best September sales in eight years.

Light trucks accounted for 76.8% of total sales. That’s the highest percentage of any September in 15 years.

Fiat 500L sales have resumed, following a July recall.

While still a relatively light seller, Ram ProMaster has surged to nearly triple the sales of the Ram Cargo Van. It also outsold the new Ford Transit van and the Nissan NV in September.

Chrysler finished September with 500,502 units in inventory, equal to a 71-day supply of inventory.

Allpar.com

Wow! That IS good news!

ggbaird wrote:

I think they'll take off like wild-fire... hopefully not literally. Too bad we have to wait a year for the little D-Max.

I'm not so sure ... I think GM shot itself in the foot by putting big money (an average of $4224 in August) on the hood to move Silverados and Sierras off the lots. It's working- GM has gained ground on Ford but those deep discounts/rebates will hurt Canyon/Colorado sales big time. There are those that want a smaller truck no matter what but I think they are a minority of potential buyers. For the remainder, why buy a midsize pickup when you can buy a full size for the same money? The rebates/discounts eat up the price spread between the midsize and full size lines ... expect to see rebates/ discounts on Canyon/Colorado not long out of the gate  or GM scaling back the rebates/discounts on the full size trucks or some combination of the two.

The little D-Max, if priced right and gets the big mpg numbers, should provide a big boost to sales - it can't come soon enough.

I was pricing out a base Colorado with a 4cyl, shortest cab/bed for a run about. Keep 6.5TD for a workhorse, --sorry couldn't resist.

The base price of $21K does sound appealing but I need 4wd and that has a price increase of almost $7,000, just for 4wd! Then if I want to get the Diesel figure another $3,000 plus what ever options GM will force into the bundle and I'm into Ram Eco-Diesel territory.

While pricing out a HD3500 GMC for replacing my old truck the 4wd charge was <$3,000.

The Colorado / Canyon isn't for everyone, but will it be the right fit for someone, at what quantity? Goals currently are for around 100k units annually. That's roughly 15% of the total GM full size sales. GM retains the highest vehicle transaction dollar amount for any full line manufacturer. The market still for whatever reasoning hasn't rebuked the continual price increase of vehicles across the board that has been pretty noticeable over the past decade. This isn't a specific hit at any product, but a trend in the industry and a real example of real inflation, not the 2% the Fed states.

4WD isn't available on the base model.  The lowest first available trim of which 4WD is available is on the WT trim.

Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box Base 2WD $20,995
Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box Base 4WD Not available

Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box WT 2WD $22,650
Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box WT 4WD $27,760
Difference $5,110

Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box LT 2WD $26,045
Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box LT 4WD $30,095
Difference $4,050

Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box Z71 2WD $28,505
Colorado Extended Cab, Long Box Z71 4WD $32,430
Difference $3,925

The lowest trim on Silverado equipped with 4WD is the WT trim.
Silverado Double Cab, standard box WT 2WD $30,695
Silverado Double Cab, standard box WT $34,650
Difference $3,955

Comparing the delta between the lowest trim Colorado and Silverado equipped with 4WD is $1,155.  Colorado costs $1,155 over above the Silverado to equipped with 4WD

Comparing the total truck costs of Colorado and Silverado equipped with 4WD with lowest available trims.  Colorado $27,760, Silverado $34,650.  The Silverado is $6,890 more expensive in total cost.

Another metric to use in evaluation is that the Colorado / Canyon can be viewed as at fight back at inflation and high cost that has creep into vehicle MSRP's over the last decade.

Comparing a decade old half ton, GMT-800 to a Colorado from a capability, capacity perspective related to cost will have a great deal in common.

For consumers that have been removed from the truck market due to high vehicle costs, this may be a way to address this void in the market.  Not everyone can or is willing to spend $40k on a truck.

My point is that if all you need is a basic truck with 4wd it will cost you 7 grand over the 2wd.

These are msrp's as well. We all realize how little that can mean in the pickup world. I would assume any incentives on the hoods of the full size trucks will be cut accordingly to keep a relative margin between them and the new mid-sizers. My opinion of course.

Glass half full, maybe they would have been better off not offering the low cost base at $20,995. Simply started at the WT trim where the Silverado starts, thus reducing the difference making the difference by 27%.

For comparison the lowest price Tacoma access cab 4x4 is $26,385. Frontier king cab 4x4 is $28,290. Pricing structures both at Toyota and Nissan are very similar to GM when it comes to entry level 2WD truck and the lowest available option 4x4 midsize truck. Toyota does still produce a regular cab version, though only in 2WD, no 4x4 option.

Much of the incentives now are simply to sell to the lower end market, otherwise a large percentage of the possible customer base would be removed from the market. MSRP's are so inflated, especially on mid to high equipment groups and optioned trucks. Manufacturers seem to know without a doubt they'll never be able to sell at MSRP. Customer wants a deal. Solution. Price high, incentiveize the crap out of full sizes to make the customer have a feel good for getting $8k off. It's a customer perception and emotion more to than true hard factual math of truck's true representation of "MSRP".