Edmunds.com Forecasts October Auto Sales: Housing Market Woes Continue to Affect Car Sales

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--This month's new vehicle sales (including fleet sales) are expected to be 1.24 million units, a 2.4 percent increase from October 2006, according to Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information.

This October had 26 selling days, one more than October 2006. When adjusted for this difference, sales decreased 1.6 percent from October 2006. (The chart below sets forth other adjusted and unadjusted comparisons.)

		Change from October 2006 (Adjusted for less selling days)			Change from October 2006 (Unadjusted for less selling days)
Chrysler		-8	.2%		-4	.5%
Ford		-18	.9%		-15	.7%
GM		1	.3%		5	.4%
Honda		5	.1%		9	.3%
Nissan		11	.9%		16	.3%
Toyota		2	.0%		6	.0%
Industry Total		-1	.6%		2	.4%

"Sales are strong for vehicles at the far ends of the price spectrum, as consumers affected by the housing market bust seek bargains while luxury buyers are largely untouched," observed Jesse Toprak, Executive Director of Industry Analysis for Edmunds.com. "Meanwhile, sales of mid-range vehicles like large cars and minivans are suffering."

"There’s nothing shocking about this month’s sales forecast," commented Michelle Krebs, Senior Editor of Edmunds' AutoObserver.com. “For example, Honda’s continued steady growth can be largely attributed to the newly redesigned Accord, while Nissan’s year-over-year boost is due to particularly weak October sales last year.”

The combined monthly U.S. market share for Chrysler, Ford and General Motors (GM) domestic nameplates is estimated to be 51.9 percent in October 2007, down from 55.1 percent in October 2006 and unchanged from 51.9 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts Chrysler will sell 152,000 units in October 2007, down 4.5 percent compared to October 2006 and down 4.6 percent from September 2007. This would result in a new car market share of 12.3 percent for Chrysler in October 2007, down from 13.2 percent in October 2006 and up slightly from 12.2 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts Ford will sell 177,000 units in October 2007, down 15.7 percent compared to October 2006 and down 3.4 percent from September 2007. This would result in a market share of 14.3 percent of new car sales in October 2007 for Ford, down from 17.3 percent in October 2006 and up from 14.0 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts GM will sell 314,000 units in October 2007, up 5.4 percent compared to October 2006 and down 6.4 percent from September 2007. GM's market share is expected to be 25.3 percent of new vehicle sales in October 2007, up from 24.6 percent in October 2006 and down slightly from 25.6 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts Honda will sell 121,000 units in October 2007, up 9.3 percent from October 2006 but down 4.9 percent from September 2007. Its market share is expected to be 9.7 percent in October 2007, up from 9.1 percent in October 2006 and unchanged from 9.7 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts Nissan will sell 87,000 units in October 2007, up 16.3 percent from October 2006 and down 7.3 percent from September 2007. Nissan's market share is expected to be 7.0 percent in October 2007, up from 6.2 percent in October 2006 and down slightly from 7.2 percent in September 2007.

Edmunds.com predicts Toyota will sell 200,000 units in October 2007, up 6.0 percent from October 2006 and down 5.9 percent from September 2007. Toyota's market share is expected to be 16.1 percent in October 2007, up slightly from 15.6 percent in October 2006 and down slightly from 16.3 percent from September 2007.

About Edmunds Inc. (http://www.edmunds.com/help/about/)

Edmunds Inc. publishes four Web sites that empower, engage and educate automotive consumers, enthusiasts and insiders. Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive consumer information, launched in 1995 as the first automotive information Web site. Its most popular feature, the Edmunds.com True Market Value^®, is relied upon by millions of people seeking current transaction prices for new and used vehicles. 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), was ranked first in the Survey of Car-Shopping Web Sites by The Wall Street Journal and was rated "#1" in Keynote's study of third-party automotive Web sites. Inside Line launched in 2005 and is the most-read automotive enthusiast Web site. CarSpace launched in 2006 and is an automotive social networking Web site. AutoObserver.com launched in 2007 and provides insightful automotive industry commentary and analysis. Edmunds Inc. is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and maintains a satellite office in suburban Detroit.