February 2015 U.S. Auto Sales From AIADA

Winter Weather Slows February Auto Sales

Washington DC March 4, 2015; Record-breaking snow and ice in many parts of the country hampered auto sales. Car sales fell 1.4 percent from February 2014 while SUVs and light trucks picked up the slack, rising 11.8 percent. Toyota’s sales were up 12.1 percent, enough to beat Ford for the country’s number two spot in sales behind General Motors. BMW, up 14.5 percent; Honda, up 4.1 percent; And Subaru, up 18.6 percent; all saw gains last month.

“Rising gas prices and bad weather may have slowed industry gains, but they couldn’t reverse them,” said AIADA President Cody Lusk. “Low interest rates and new models loaded with tech and safety features have given consumers new reasons to buy.”

Internationals Capture Majority Market Share in February

International brands continued their market share lead in 2015, capturing 54.5 percent of all February vehicle sales, down slightly from the 54.6 percent share they held in January. In total, they sold 685,118 vehicles, up from 628,241 last month and the 635,418 units they sold in February 2014.

Asian brands accounted for 45.8 percent of the February auto market, selling 575,445 vehicles. Together, these brands were up from the 45.7 percent share and 525,868 units they sold in January. European market share dipped to 8.7 percent from 8.9 percent. However, sales of European vehicles were up with 109,673 sold, an improvement over the 102,376 units they sold last month. Domestic brands finished the month with 45.5 percent of the U.S. market, up from 45.4 percent last month, and sales of 572,501 vehicles, up from 522,882 in January.

Top 10 Vehicles Showcase Internationals

Led by the Toyota Camry in third place, international nameplate vehicles occupied five of the top ten selling vehicle spots in February. The Toyota Camry regained its spot as the top-selling car in the U.S. after being unseated by the Toyota Corolla last month and the Nissan Altima in December.  The Nissan Altima climbed one spot into fifth place, while the Toyota Corolla logged a sixth place finish to round out the international nameplate cars on February’s top ten list. The Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4—both compact utility vehicles—finished the month in eighth and ninth place, respectively.

N. American Manufacturing Remains Strong

Despite challenges to some manufacturing units due to labor disputes at some California ports, international nameplate brands maintained a strong North American manufacturing presence in North America in February. Together, these plants supplied 450,646 vehicles on dealer lots in February, up from 408,261 last month.

Asian automakers produced 414,232 vehicles at North American facilities, up from 377,667 last month. Of these vehicles, 227,153 were cars (39.6 percent of all cars sold in the U.S.), while 187,079 were trucks (27.4 percent of all trucks sold in the U.S.). Their European counterparts produced 36,414 vehicles at North American factories, including 23,107 cars (4 percent of all cars sold in the U.S.) and 13,307 trucks (1.9 percent of all trucks sold in the U.S.).

Outlook

AutoData Corp. reports that the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) slowed from 16.66 million units in January to 16.23 million units in February. In February 2014 the rate stood at 15.41 million units. Industrywide, 1,257,619 light vehicles were sold last month. Sales for all brands, unadjusted for business days, were up 5.3 percent from February 2014.