Edmunds.com Forecasts December Auto Sales: Domestic Automakers to End the Year on a High Note

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--Dec. 28, 2005--This month's new vehicle sales are expected to total 1.42 million units, a seven percent decrease from December 2004, according to Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information.

This would result in total industry sales of 16.875 million units for 2005, up slightly from 16.84 million units in 2004.

The combined monthly U.S. market share for Chrysler, Ford and General Motors (GM) domestic nameplates (including fleet sales) is estimated to be 57.8 percent in December, down from 59.3 percent in December 2004 but up significantly from 53.1 percent in November 2005.

Edmunds.com predicts Chrysler will sell 189,000 units in December, down five percent compared to December 2004 but up 18 percent compared to November 2005. This would result in a new vehicle market share of 13.3 percent for Chrysler in December, up from 13.0 percent in December 2004 but down from 13.8 percent in November 2005.

Edmunds.com predicts Ford will sell 245,000 units in December, down 14 percent compared to December 2004 but up 35 percent compared to November 2005. This would result in a market share of 17.3 percent of new vehicle sales in December for Ford, down from 18.6 percent in December 2004 but up from 15.7 percent in November 2005.

According to Edmunds.com, GM will sell 386,000 units in December, down nine percent compared to December 2004 but up 41 percent compared to November 2005. GM's market share is expected to be 27.2 percent of new vehicle sales in December, down slightly from 27.7 percent in December 2004 but up from 23.7 percent in November 2005.

"December is typically a very strong month for automakers since many consumers look for year-end deals," said Jesse Toprak, executive director of industry analysis for Edmunds.com. "It is also a popular time of year for drivers to trade in their vehicles for those with winter driving features such as four-wheel drive or stability control. Thanks to this trend and the fact that gas prices have come back down to earth, SUVs and light trucks are selling well this month -- good news for domestic automakers who suffered a weak November."

This month, Honda is predicted to sell 126,000 units, down eight percent compared to December 2004 but up 19 percent compared with November 2005. Its market share is expected to decrease from 9.1 percent in November to 8.9 percent in December.

Nissan is predicted to sell more than 87,000 units in December, down six percent compared to December 2004 but up 13 percent from November 2005. Nissan's market share is expected to be 6.1 percent, down from 6.7 percent in November.

Toyota is expected to sell 193,000 units, up three percent compared to December 2004 and up 14 percent compared to November 2005; however, Toyota's market share decreased from 14.6 percent in November to 13.6 percent in December.

About Edmunds.com, Inc.

Edmunds.com is the premier online resource for automotive information. Its comprehensive set of data, tools and services, including Edmunds.com True Market Value(R) pricing, is generated by Edmunds.com Information Solutions and is licensed to third parties. The company supplies content for the auto sections of NYTimes.com, AOL, CNN.com and About.com; provides weekly data to Automotive News; and delivers monthly data reports to Wall Street analysts. Edmunds.com also publishes Inside Line (www.insideline.com), a free online magazine for auto enthusiasts. Edmunds.com was named "Best Car Research Site" by Forbes ASAP, has been selected by consumers as the "Most Useful Web Site" according to every J.D. Power and Associates New Autoshopper.com Study(SM), and was ranked first in the Survey of Car-Shopping Web Sites by The Wall Street Journal. The company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and maintains a satellite office in suburban Detroit.