AUTO INDUSTRY Sunfire, Cavalier sales drop

Sales at GM and Ford are lagging, while Nissan and Toyota sales soar.
STAFF/WIRE REPORT
Sales of cars made at the General Motors' Lordstown complex were down significantly last month.
The Lordstown plant was closed for the first two months of the year, however, as workers were trained on new production methods.
GM said Tuesday that it sold 11,841 Chevrolet Cavaliers last month, compared with 16,992 sold in the first month of last year. GM sold 1,761 Pontiac Sunfires last month, compared with 3,378 in January 2003.
Both models are nearing the end of production. The Chevrolet Cobalt, a new model, is to be launched in October. The Lordstown plant also will produce the Pontiac Pursuit, which will be sold only in Canada.
Overall sales
As the overall car and truck market stagnates, GM and Ford Motor Co. saw sales drop more than expected last month, while Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. continue to surge in the American market.
Together, domestic and foreign makers reported a 0.7 percent drop in car and light-truck sales for January.
GM, the world's largest automaker, said its new car and truck sales fell 1.8 percent in January, while Ford reported a "painful" decline of 9.8 percent.
Nissan said its sales soared 25.7 percent, while Toyota's climbed 15.8 percent. Honda sales fell 3.7 percent.
DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group was alone among the traditional "Big Three" domestic automakers to report a positive month, noting a 9.4 percent increase.