May sales updates

Ford kicked off the reporting with a much-better-than-forecast 24.3 percent shortfall compared to May 2008. As the company capitalized on the fact it’s the only U.S. automaker not on the government dole, Lincoln sales were actually better than last year’s and total volume was the highest since last July. Sales of the Fusion were up 9.4 percent making the popular sedan the only Ford product ahead of 2008 in year-to-date (YTD) sales.

Mazda sales were down 40 percent as small cars and SUVs continue to get hammered.

Mercedes-Benz reported a 30.5 percent drop in sales with almost every line reporting large deficits. Smart sales plunged 56.6 percent as the economy took a bite out of sales of such discretionary vehicles.

Porsche sales were down 29 percent, led by a 46 percent drop in sales of the Boxter/Cayman and a 27.6 percent drop in Cayenne sales. The company notes that 2009 sales have been rising each month since January.

Honda sales volume was down nearly 41.5 percent, slightly worse than forecast, but the company notes that May 2008 set an all-time sales record for the brand.

Toyota sales dropped 40.7 percent with major shortfalls posted by the Corolla, Scion and light trucks. This left the top Japanese automaker behind Ford in May sales. YTD sales are now down almost 39 percent and Toyota has only a slim lead over Ford.

General Motors reported 190,881 light vehicle sales, enough to keep it in first place and a 29 percent drop as compared to the 37 percent plunge predicted by the Bloomberg analysts. The Camaro is off to a nice start, though still behind the Mustang.

Nissan posted a 33 percent decline, also better than analyst forecasts. Strong sales of the new Maxima and Z help offset major nosedives in those of the Versa and Sentra.

Hyundai sales were off 20 percent, slightly worse than analyst predictions as sales of the Elantra and Azera took a major hit.

BMW sales fell 27.8 percent but that was enough to give BMW their best sales of the year and first place in the luxury vehicle segment, beating perennial champion Lexus in both May and YTD sales. Mini sales were down 27 percent.

Chrysler beat analysts’ estimates with sales down 46.8 percent. The Wrangler is still hanging in there with 34 more sales than last year, bringing it up to 11 percent ahead in YTD sales. Ram pickup sales were also comparatively good. Minivans took a hit as the Honda Odyssey regained first place both in monthly and YTD sales. The Town & Country fell to second for the month and year while the Caravan fell behind the Toyota Sienna for May and hold only a slim lead over the Sienna in YTD sales. Chrysler is now in fifth place among the major automakers, behind GM, Toyota, Ford and Honda.

Volkswagen sales dropped about 12.4 percent, leaving it 15.5 percent behind the first five months of 2008. Strong sales of the new Jetta TDI diesel, the new Passat CC and the Tiguan CUV helped overcome shortages of the Rabbit, GTI and R32.