Cruze fleet sales down, but individual sales up in February as next-gen launch nears

LORDSTOWN

Although its overall February sales dropped 29 percent in part due to fleet sales, the Lordstown-built Chevrolet Cruze’s retail sales to individual buyers were up 27 percent.

“Quite honestly there aren’t a lot on the market,” said Glenn Johnson, president of the United Auto Workers Local 1112. “I would believe that the pickings are getting slimmer and we hope people are awaiting the arrival of the next-generation Cruze.”

Production at the Lordstown plant on the new Cruze is underway for the compact car’s spring showroom debut.

As GM prepares for the new Cruze to come out, dealers are selling down the first generation, which means the Cruze inventory has dropped.

“You don’t want a big supply of the old model when the new one launches,” said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book. “It’s important to sell down.”

GM’s cutback on fleet sales also impacted the Cruze last month.

GM reduced daily rental deliveries by about 16,500 units, or 39 percent in February.

Read more about the situation in Wednesday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.