With February in the books, it’s now a full year since Canadian auto sales began their gradual decline. The good news is, that decline is still gradual.
Sales of 120,891 new cars, trucks and utility vehicles in February 2019 were down 3.7% from the same record-breaking month a year ago. Still, it was the third-best February ever for sales and the SAAR (Seasonally Adjusted Annualized Sales Rate) remained steady at about 2.0-million, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants (DAC).
Considering the context, it wasn’t a bad month overall, especially given the dramatic winter weather that affected much of the country. “When you factor in the significant snow and weather events that have occurred over the month of February across the country, the results are actually pretty good,” said David Adams, president of Global Automakers of Canada (GAC).
It was a bad month for some individual automakers, however, especially the European luxury brands, all of which, except for Land Rover and Porsche, suffered double-digit percentage declines. So, too, did FCA, Mazda and Nissan. On the flip side, both Hyundai and Kia made at least double-digit gains, as did Lexus and the lower-volume Genesis and Smart brands.
Passenger-car sales, which have long been under pressure, fell even more precipitously in February, down by 16.0 %. They accounted for just 24.9% of the market, both for the month and for the year to date. Total light-truck sales, which include vans and utility vehicles increased by 1.2%, claiming 75.1% of the market for the month and the year to date.
FCA edges past Ford in February
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles edged past Ford to claim the number-one sales ranking for February, despite a 2.0% decline in sales from a year ago, to 18,461 units. Year-to-date, FCA ranks second with 32,652 sales, down 10.8% from 2018, resulting in a 0.9% loss in market share to 14.2%.
Ford’s 18,250 sales in February were down just 1.2% from a year ago but that was enough to push it into second place for the month. Year-to-date, however, Ford remains number-one with 34,404 sales, although that total is down 1.6% from a year ago and its market share has declined by 0.6% to 15.0%.
General Motors’ February sales of 16,350 vehicles were down by 9.1%, relegating GM to third place in the rankings for the month and the year to date. YTD sales of 30,650 units were down 11.9%, reducing its market share by 1.0% to 13.3%.
Toyota remained securely in fourth place with 11,971 sales, down 1.0% from February 2018. Year-to-date, Toyota’s sales o4 24,749 units are up 6.4% from a year ago, boosting market share 1.2% to 10.8% — the greatest share increase (tied) in the industry.
Honda, with 10,876 vehicles sold in February, was the only automaker in the top five to increase its sales over 2018 – by 2.0%. Year-to-date, however, Honda’s cumulative 20,762 sales were down by 8.4%, cutting market share by 0.3% to 9.0%.
Korean brands continue to show strength
Nissan maintained its sixth-place position for both the month and the year to date, in spite of a February decline of 13.7%, to 7,785 vehicles sold. Cumulative sales of 15,049 vehicles represent an 11.5% decline, cutting market share by 0.4% to 6.6%.
Hyundai continued to gain on Nissan with 7,303 sales, an increase of 14.6% from a year ago. The Korean brand remained in seventh place for the year to date as well, with 13,669 sales, up 18.1% from 2018. That solid gain increased Hyundai’s market share by 1.2% to 6.0% — the greatest share increase in the industry, tied with Toyota.
Kia surpassed Volkswagen to claim eighth place for the month with 4,228 sales — an increase of 10.5% from a year ago. The Korean brand remains in ninth for the year so far, although its 7,776 cumulative sales are 9.8% ahead of the same period a year ago, increasing market share by 0.5% to 3.4%.
Volkswagen slipped to ninth for the month in spite of a 0.5% sales increase, to 4,130 units. The German brand retained eighth-place year-to-date, however, with a 3.5% sales decline to 8,138 units, maintaining market share at 3.5%.
Mazda ranked tenth for February with a 17.1% sales decline to 3824 units. The Japanese brand is tenth for the year to date as well, with 7,569 sales, down 16.2% from a year ago. That decline has cut market share by 0.4% to 3.3%.
Mercedes-Benz edged past Subaru to claim 11th place for the month, in spite of a 21.9% sales decline. Significant declines for Audi and BMW as well, left them well behind in the luxury-brand sales race, however.
Subaru, in 12th place for the month, suffered a rare market decline, with sales down by 5.7% to 3,069 units. The AWD brand retained 11th place in cumulative sales.
Winners and losers
On a percentage basis, the biggest winners in February were Genesis (+283.3%), Lexus (+26.4%), Smart (+15.4%), Hyundai (+14.6%) and Kia (+10.9%).
The biggest losers, in percentage terms, were Maserati (-33.3%), Audi (-27.6%), Jaguar (-23.8%), Mercedes-Benz (-21.9%) and Mini (-21.0%).
By Gerry Malloy
