Chevrolet tops Ford in US sales

DETROIT -- Chevrolet was the best-selling brand in the US market in 2005, outpacing Ford for the first time in 19 years, General Motors Corp. said yesterday. But that was where the good news ended for GM and other US automakers, which continued to lose ground to foreign rivals.

Japanese automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. and South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co. all reported sales increases of 9 percent or more for the year. Toyota, whose US sales were up 10 percent over 2004, said its Camry sedan was the best-selling car in the United States for the fourth year in a row, while its Lexus nameplate was the best-selling luxury brand.

The Big Three US automakers' sales were down 2 percent overall, while Asian brands' sales climbed 7 percent and European brands fell 3 percent. The total number of vehicles sold in the United States was nearly 17 million, about the same as 2004.

Sales fell 4 percent at both US industry leaders GM and Ford Motor Co. while DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group sales rose 5 percent.

US automakers also reported disappointing results for December despite a new round of holiday discounts. GM's December sales were down 10 percent, Ford fell 8.7 percent, and Chrysler was down 5 percent as payback from strong summer sales continued. A GM official said last year's strong December made it a difficult comparison.

Asian automakers fared better in December, in part because they didn't offer employee-discounts during the summer. Toyota's December sales were up 8 percent, while Hyundai's were up nearly 16 percent as customers snapped up the 2006 Sonata. Honda Motor Co.'s December sales were off 3 percent while Nissan's were off 1 percent.

GM's sales decline for the year included a 7 percent decline in car sales and a 2 percent decline in sales of trucks and sport utility vehicles. Although Chevrolet sales slipped slightly from last year to 2.6 million, they outpaced Ford by around 21,000 vehicles thanks to strong pickup sales and GM's new HHR crossover.

Paul Ballew, GM's executive director of market and industry analysis, said the year-end totals were below the company's expectations. But he said the win for Chevrolet gives the world's largest automaker an important boost. GM lost nearly $4 billion in the first nine months of 2005 as it struggled with high costs and falling US market share.

''It does confirm our ability to produce industry-leading vehicles," Ballew said.

Ford's sales drop for 2005 reflected lower consumer demand for trucks and sport utility vehicles in the face of high gas prices. Chrysler's rise for the year was due to hot-selling models like the Chrysler 300 sedan and the Town & Country minivan, which both saw sales increase more than 25 percent for the year.