- Chrysler Makes Smart Call Staying Unplugged—For Now
- China Growth Shows GM Good Fortune
- Inflatable Seat Belts Aimed At Second Row Safety
- Do You Buy Marchionne's Turnaround Plan?
- October Shows Auto Rebound Will Be Slow
- How Mulally Got Ford Back in The Black
- Green Car Incentives Are Just Starting To Roll
- GM Touts Progress, Serves Up Details on Latest Refunds
- Why Ford Is Winning With Reliability
- Can Hybrid Luxury Automaker Thrive With Old GM Plant?
MOST SHARED
- Peak Oil Closer Than IEA Forecasts Show: Report
- Pociask: In The Electronics War Does The Consumer Really Win?
- Jobless Rate to Hit 10.5%, Keeping Fed in Box: Poll
- AIG Moving Toward Repaying Bailout: Moody's
- News Corp. May Pull Content From Google Searches
- Home Prices Sank Further In Most Parts of US in 3rd Quarter
- Justices Poke Fun at Patents for the Abstract
- Can Apple Top Microsoft as Most Valuable Tech Firm?
- Nov. 10: S&P Stocks Trading at New 52-Week Highs
- Passive Job Search Strategies
- Back Off, Regulators!
- America Is On Sale
- Warren Buffett and the Crisis: 'Brilliant Moves Interspersed with Some Surprising Errors'
- Schork Oil Outlook: More Strength in Crude
- Chrysler Makes Smart Call Staying Unplugged—For Now
- Your Next Move: Thriving and Managing in Limbo
- Yankees Team Signed Ball Selling For $3,500
- Home Prices Decline Further In Most Parts of US
- Mortgage Modification Program Shows Improvement
- Dodd Proposes Creating Financial Stability Agency
- Fed Officials Warn About Job Growth, Weak Recovery
- Jobless Rate to Hit 10.5%, Keeping Fed in Box: Poll
- New Lows for Stocks Next Year: Equities Bear
- AIG Moving Toward Repaying Bailout: Moody's
- 'Peak Oil' Closer Than IEA Forecasts Show: Report
- Buffett and the Crisis: 'Brilliant Moves...Surprising Errors'
RSS FEED
Behind The Wheel
![]() |
Initial reports of October retail auto sales show Toyota [TM
Loading...
()
] out pacing GM[GM
Loading...
()
] and Ford [F
Loading...
()
]. If that trend holds for the full month, we could be looking at the day many in Detroit have feared for years.
Toyota's October surge is due to a number of factors, most notably the Japanese automakers ability to offer financing while GM dealers struggle in a tight credit market. I've had a few GM dealers tell me that Toyota pushing 0 % is not a huge deal. Which is interesting since far more have told me they are losing potential sales because they can't get financing for customers. How many of those people went across the street to Toyota is hard to tell.
But even if Toyota out sells GM for October, what does it mean? Yes, there are bragging rights, but beyond that is there a residual carry-over to Toyota being #1 in sales for one month? Yes and No.
Yes, in that Toyota's ascent to #1 would confirm the momentum the automaker has been building for years. And the auto business is very much about momentum. When a company is picking up business, the public notices and even the most stubborn people admit, "maybe I should at least look at those cars and trucks."
But an October surge by Toyota may not mean much because it's simply one month. GM will still lead the industry for sales this year. When the credit crunch eases, GM dealers should have an easier time getting credit for customers they are now losing. And if GM merges with Chrysler, the automakers share of U.S. sales will jump up to a commanding 30-32%.
So as this last week moves along, and you read more about GM struggling to hang onto #1 in sales, don't look at this as the end of the battle between GM and Toyota. It's one month.
_____________________________________
Click on Ticker to Track Corporate News:
- Ford Motor [F
Loading...
()
]
- General Motors [GM
Loading...
()
]
- Nissan [NSANY
Loading...
()
]
- Honda Motor [HMC
Loading...
()
]
_____________________________________
Questions? Comments?










