GM sales hit 33-month high in May

Staff report

detroit

General Motors reported May vehicle sales of 245,256 in the United States, the company’s largest monthly total in 33 months.

The Lordstown-built Chevrolet Cruze sales were down compared with the previous May. There were 19,613 Cruzes sold, according to GM sales figures released Friday.

Cruze sales for the year remain ahead of the previous year by nearly 10 percent. In the past 12 months ending in May, GM has sold 245,256 Cruzes.

Retail sales have increased by 14 percent for the year, over the same period last year.

Part of the reason Cruze sales are down for the month is that it was this time last year when Toyota had supply issues due to the Japan earthquake and tsunami, said Kristen Andersson, senior analyst for TrueCar, a vehicle information website.

“The Cruze was also benefiting from higher gas prices,” she said.

The Cruze most likely will continue to have monthly sales of between 18,000 and 21,000, which is a solid figure, Andersson said.

“You might see blips where gas prices are high or something else causes the sales to increase,” she said.

Buick and GMC reported sales increases of 19 percent, and Chevrolet was up 10 percent.

Sales of GM small and compact cars increased by 16 percent in May compared with a year ago. The increase was driven by the Chevrolet Sonic, which had sales of 7,205 units, and the Buick Verano, with 3,609 sales.

Combined sales of all seven Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac crossovers were 14 percent higher than a year ago. The Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain continue to stand out, with sales up 15 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

Full-size pickup sales increased 23 percent year over year, midsize pickup sales were 34 percent higher, and full-size sport-utility vehicles were up 14 percent.

Overall, this was a solid month for GM, Andersson said.