Cruze moves into fast lane in April sales

May 4, 2011 at 12:10a.m.

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LORDSTOWN

General Motors Co. sales jumped 27 percent in April compared to the same time last year, mostly due to an increase in fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Lordstown-built Chevrolet Cruze.

GM, which sold 52,205 Cruzes in the United States in the first three months of 2011, sold 25,160 in April, its best sales month since its October 2010 release. The figure topped the previous record of 18,556 set in February.

The Cruze, already the best-selling Chevrolet nameplate, also bested the car it replaced, the Cobalt, by 180 percent.

The total nearly matched the number of Cruzes produced by Lordstown in April (26,184), according to figures released by GM.

The automaker credited rising fuel prices as one reason for the big numbers posted by the Cruze, GMC Terrain and Chevrolet Equinox.

“Recently, rising fuel prices have led many to rethink their vehicle choice,” said Don Johnson, vice president of U.S. Sales Operations. “Because of the investments we’ve made in fuel-efficiency and global product architectures, the company is well-positioned to meet these needs.”

Kelly Blue Book, the popular vehicle valuation website, reported Monday that fuel prices were the No. 1 determinant of car buyers’ decision-making in April.

KBB, which conducts a monthly survey, reported the number of respondents who indicated that better fuel economy as the top reason for purchasing a new vehicle has risen 12 percent since the start of the year. Eighty-four percent said gas prices have influenced their vehicle-purchasing decisions.

Tom Mock, spokesman for the Lordstown plant, at a Greenwood Chevrolet event Tuesday morning, was astonished to hear the sales figures.

“It exceeds our goal,” he said. “That’s pretty substantial growth.

“It’s great news for our complex, great news for our people and great news for our community.”