GM new-car sales remain flat for August


August 28, 2014 at 12:00a.m.

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

General Motors’ U.S. new-car sales for August are estimated to almost match sales from last year, according to a sales forecast from TrueCar, an Internet car-buying platform, and Kelley Blue Book, a vehicle valuations and information source.

August auto sales numbers are expected to be released early next week.

TrueCar and Kelley Blue Book released its sales forecast for August on Wednesday, showing overall vehicles sales from all manufacturers, including fleets in the U.S., reaching more than 1.5 million — a slight decrease of 0.1 percent from last August.

KBB showed overall vehicle sales reaching more than 1.4 million at a decrease of 0.7 percent from last August.

Both platforms have GM at 273,000 units sold, which is more than all other manufacturers. Toyota sold 220,000 units, and Ford sold 210,000 units, according to TrueCar sales forecast.

“Cars are selling faster,” said Tim Fleming, a KBB analyst. There was one fewer selling day this August compared with last year, however, which does impact the volume of sales, he added.

TrueCar has GM’s market share slightly down to 18.4 percent compared with last year’s 18.6 percent. There also was a slight decrease for GM at 18.3 percent from 18.4 percent, according to the KBB forecast.

In addition, GM’s incentive spending is estimated to be up 3.5 percent from last August.

KBB estimates a total of 16.3 million vehicles will be sold this year, Fleming said.

TrueCar did not break down the number of models sold for each maker.

“While we continue to keep close tabs on inventories and incentives, we remain upbeat about auto-industry sales, segment mix and profitability,” John Krafcik, president of TrueCar, said in a statement. “Despite one fewer selling day, sales are tracking to match last year’s epic August, while incentive spending changes reflect consumer demand shifting to higher-MSRP [manufacturer’s suggested retail price], higher-profit vehicle segments, which is a net positive for most full-line automakers.”