Chrysler Passes Honda
Chrysler sales increased to 100,077, enough to put it ahead of Honda for the industry’s No. 4 sales spot last month. Deliveries of its namesake brand rose 92 percent, helped by the Town & Country minivan and Sebring sedan. The Dodge brand increased 71 percent, Jeep climbed 65 percent, and Ram gained 22 percent.
“Chrysler is benefiting from stable gas prices and the highly visible launch of the redesigned Grand Cherokee,” said Ivan Drury, an analyst for Edmunds.com. “As long as consumers are not worried about high fuel costs Chrysler should be able to maintain a decent sales pace, since 71 percent of Chrysler sales are trucks.”
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of consumer sentiment fell to 68.2 last month from 68.9 in August. The drop was smaller than analysts estimated, evidence that the largest part of the economy may be stabilizing.
“We believe the economic recovery in the second half will be slower than the first half,” GM’s Johnson said. “We do expect modest employment growth. Consumers are starting to spend, albeit cautiously.”
Automakers decreased sales incentives and discounts by an average of 2 percent from last year, which may have kept sales from gaining more, according to TrueCar.