All Entries Tagged With: "sales"
Chevy Temporarily Stops Building The Volt, And That Should Surprise No One
I’m a fan of electric car technology. I’d like to see every car on the road be 100% electric, because every car would be charged with electricity generated at American power plants that are fueled by American coal and natural gas (and maybe even wind and solar energy, as the technology matures). An all electric vehicle fleet would be awesome because it would put oil-rich dictators out of business and keep billions of dollars spent on foreign oil at home.
However, I’m a realist – I don’t think anyone should buy an electric car until they deliver the same type of performance we can get from a gas engine or gas-electric hybird…which is why I’m not a fan of the Chevy Volt. Coincidentally, this is also why Chevy recently announced that they were temporarily suspending Volt production.
Tundra Caters To “Sophisticated” Buyers?
The Truth About Cars (TTAC) usually does a nice job of presenting ideas that aren’t necessarily “main stream” automotive news, and for that they should be recognized. However, their recent blog post The Toyota Tundra: The Quiche Truck is a bit of a blunder. Not only does it mis-represent some key facts about the Tundra, it seems to recycle some commonly held views that don’t match reality. Here’s where it falls apart:
Tundra Sales Up 40% in July, 28.5% For The Year
Toyota’s July 2010 sales figures (released yesterday) show that the Tundra continues to sell at an above-average rate in 2010. This is a good sign – not only of the Tundra’s value, but that the pickup truck market continues to accelerate.
In fact, this might even be a sign that the economy is recovering. Some economists say that truck sales are tightly linked to construction, which is linked to investment. Who knows if this is true, but it’s a good thing to think about.
Is Nissan Doubling Down On The Titan?
When you’re dealt the right cards, doubling down is a great way to win big. Nissan looks like a company ready to double down on their investment in the truck segment, but do they have the right hand? Here’s a look at Nissan’s history with the Titan and where they might be headed.
Incentives Wake Up Toyota Sales, But at What Cost?
Yesterday Toyota’s March sales numbers came in and they were – in a word – huge. Toyota’s aggressive March sales incentives led to a 44.7% increase year over year, considerably higher than the industry’s impressive monthly gain of 24%. While many analysts have pointed out that Toyota’s 44.7% sales increase isn’t sustainable, that’s not really the point. Of course 40%+ sales increases aren’t sustainable. Here’s the real question: Did Toyota’s decision to get aggressive on incentives kick-start the auto industry, or did they simply pull sales forward?
