US Auto Sales Accelerate in First Half of Year

The first half of 2023 tells a very different story than the first half of 2022. Supply is picking up, as has sales volume has in nearly every vehicle segment.

Top sales trends for the first half of the year include:

• General Motors outselling Toyota for a second consecutive year
• Ford on pace to be the top brand for the first time in three years
• Hyundai-Kia leapfrogging Stellantis to become the No. 4 automaker
• Tesla (based on estimates, since the company doesn’t report U.S. results) climbing to the No. 8 spot

Truck Sales

Ford and GM continued their tight race for No. 1 in pickup sales. Ford was No. 1 in the second quarter, while GM maintains a slight lead year to date. The top three models by sales volume were as follows:

• The Ford F-Series bested the competition with a 28% increase in sales, to hit 382,893 vehicles.
• Chevrolet Silverado sales totaled 264,070, up 1.8% to capture the second spot.
• Ram pickups came in third with 223,049 vehicles sold, a 9% decrease.

SUV Sales

In the SUV space, GM’s highly profitable large SUVs outsold the competition by Stellantis and Ford combined. Here, GM, Stellantis and Ford were in the top three.

• GM sold 149,883 large SUVs, up 20%.
• Stellantis sold 56,012 large SUVs, up 25%.
• Ford sold 48,224 large SUVs, up 67%.

EV Sales

Tesla again dominated EV sales, capturing three of the top four spots:

• Tesla Model Y, up 76%, with 190,500 vehicles sold
• Tesla Model 3 came in second with 121,500 vehicles sold, an increase of 35%.
• Chevrolet Bolt took the third spot, selling 33,659 vehicles, a 361% increase over the previous year.
• Tesla Model S took fourth with 19,100 vehicles sold, a decline of 5.9%.

Where U.S. auto sales shake out by year's end remains anyone's guess. An uncertain sales environment rife with high prices, high interest rates, and a chaotic economy could lead to unexpected sales shifts. 

Originally posted on Auto Dealer Today