Chrysler fights back

FORMER automotive basket case Chrysler recorded one of the biggest sales improvements in the United States market in 2011, with group sales up 26 per cent on the previous year.

Driven by a dramatic 44 per cent jump in Jeep volumes, the Fiat-controlled conglomerate outpaced the overall American market, which grew by 10 per cent or about 1.2 million units to about 12.8 million vehicles for the 12 months.

Chrysler and the other American ‘Big Three’ companies, General Motors and Ford, all gained market share – a rarity in North America where they have been under siege from the ‘transplant’ Japanese and South Korean auto-makers for the past two decades.

Instead, it was the two biggest Japanese companies, Toyota and Honda, that lost ground, mainly due to major stock shortages caused by the twin disasters of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami and the Thai floods in 2011.

Toyota group sales – including Scion and Lexus – fell 7.0 per cent, to 1,644,660 units, placing its behind market leader GM (2,503,797, up 13 per cent) and Ford (2,143,101, up 9.0 per cent).

Honda group sales fell 7.0 per cent to 1,147,285, as it slipped behind Chrysler and into fifth place, just ahead of Nissan whose sales rose 15 per cent to claw above the one million mark (1,042,534).

Among the big winners in 2011 were the South Korean sister companies, Hyundai and Kia, whose sales zoomed up 20 per cent and 36 per cent respectively.

Between them, they sold 1,131,183 vehicles for the 12 months, placing them among the major players for the first time.

Volkswagen also was one of the big improvers, up 26 per cent to 443,840 units on the back of the new Passat and Jetta, both of which are made in North America according to local tastes.

US December sales were up 8.0 per cent on the same month last year – slightly under the average 2011 pace of growth – but most companies are forecasting further gains in 2012.

GM vice president of sales operations Don Johnson predicted light vehicle sales to reach between 13.5 million to 14 million units.

For the US local manufacturers, one of the most pleasing aspects of 2011 was the above-par growth of the bread-and-butter brands such as Chevrolet (up 14 per cent), Ford (up 17 per cent) and Chrysler (up 12 per cent).