Detroit carmakers show sales gains on LI
Daniel LaGrega of Hicksville checks a Traverse Monday at Robert Chevy in Hicksville, where the Cruze and Equinox are popular. (Aug. 1, 2011) Credit: Chris Ware
Detroit's carmakers gained almost eight points of market share on Long Island for the 12 months ended in May as Japan's earthquake and tsunami reduced supplies of Japanese brand vehicles and new Detroit models gained traction with buyers, according to new statistics.
Detroit scored an overall 9 percent year-over-year increase in registrations of new cars and trucks in Nassau and Suffolk, to a total of 16,029, according to the Michigan-based auto information provider R.L. Polk & Co.
Registrations of most Japanese brands fell, including Nissan, Toyota and Honda. Damage in March to factories in Japan forced production cuts of models assembled there and of some assembled in the United States with parts from Japan.
Mark Calisi, owner of Eagle Chevrolet in Riverhead, said the shortfall of Japanese models, coupled with the new Chevrolet Cruze compact's own attributes, have made it his strongest performer. "You can't get enough of them," he said.
It's followed by the Malibu midsize sedan and the Equinox SUV. At Robert Chevrolet in Hicksville, general manager Scott Brown also credits the Cruze and Equinox for stronger sales all year. "July was generally a little better than the previous July," he said, "but we don't have enough Cruzes and Equinoxes in stock to meet demand."
Calisi said, though, he thinks the gains locally by Detroit brands could be partly reversed in coming months when Japan's production returns to pre-earthquake levels and Japanese automakers begin trying to win back lost market share with rebates and other sales incentives. "This trend will be reversed shortly, unfortunately," he said.
But for Honda there was more bad news Monday about a core product: Consumer Reports criticized the redesigned 2012 Civic as "less agile and with lower interior quality than its predecessor" and complained of a "choppy ride, long stopping distances, and pronounced road noise." It said the Hyundai Elantra was best in that class.
The Asian decline on Long Island in May was partly offset by strong gains in registrations of models from the Elantra's producer, South Korea's Hyundai and its Kia unit and by gains for two lower-volume Japanese brands: Subaru and Suzuki. Collectively, Asian automakers held a still-dominant 51.3 percent of the local market in May.
Meanwhile registrations of major Detroit brands, including Chevrolet, Dodge, Jeep and Ford, surged by almost 49 percent for the year ended in May so that the Detroiters held 29 percent of the Long Island market.
Ford was the strongest domestic brand locally in May, with registrations up by 30 percent from a year earlier. Leo Sternlicht, co-owner of Riverhead Ford Lincoln and Riverhead Toyota, cited the redesigned Ford Explorer SUV as the biggest contributor to his sales growth, followed by the smaller Escape SUV. "The Escape, I think, has been affected because the [Toyota] RAV4 supplies have been pretty darn tight," he said.
