Greg
01-06-2006, 08:07 AM
Ford Explorer lost its 14-year claim as the best-selling sport utility vehicle in the United States last year to the Chevrolet TrailBlazer, figures released yesterday show.
Last year, Ford sold 29 percent fewer Explorers, most of which are built at its Louisville plant on Fern Valley Road. High-gas prices and new vehicles drew customers away from traditional sport utility vehicles.
The TrailBlazer also had a tough year with sales dropping 14 percent to 244,150, just beating Explorer's sales of 239,788.
Michael Robinet, an analyst with CSM Worldwide in Detroit, said the Explorer should retake its sales crown this year as GM is expected to cut several TrailBlazer versions while Ford plans to reintroduce its Explorer Sport Trac pickup.
But neither Robinet nor Ford sales analyst George Pipas are expecting gains in SUV sales.
"The world is moving on. There are still customers for these kinds of vehicles, but not as many as a few years ago," Robinet said. He added that many former SUV customers are choosing sedans or crossover, SUV-like vehicles built on car frames instead of truck frames.
Pipas said if gas prices stay stable, he expects the Explorer to see about the same number of sales this year as it did last year. If gas prices climb back above $2.50, double-digit sales declines are possible, he said.
Sales recovered somewhat last month from November, the Explorer's worst month ever. Ford started selling the redesigned 2006 Explorer in the fall.
"September and October were disasters across the board, and it was against this backdrop that we launched the new Explorer," Pipas said, adding that during those months, gasoline prices soared above $3 per gallon, and car buyers were staying out of showrooms following the summer's huge discounts.
Last month's sales were an improvement from November, when Ford sold 11,792 Explorers. Pipas said the 61 percent gain from that month is a sign that the Explorer, built in Louisville and St. Louis, is "picking up momentum."
Ford had expected declines for the Explorer and its other SUVs, and at the beginning last year ended one of two production shifts in St. Louis. But as SUV sales sagged, each plant went through 10 weeks of temporary layoffs as Ford tried to cut inventories. The St. Louis plant will also be shut down for the first three weeks of this year.
When plants are on layoff, workers collect state unemployment insurance benefits and Ford payments that add up to about 95 percent of typical weekly wages.
Ford plans to unveil a restructuring Jan. 23 that the company has said will include plant closures. Several analysts have said the St. Louis plant is likely to be closed.
The Louisville plant, running two shifts, can meet current estimates of Explorer demand.
Not all of the news was bad for Ford's Louisville plants. The company sold 901,436 F-Series pickups, including F-Series Super Duty trucks made at the Kentucky Truck Plant in eastern Jefferson County.
While that represented a 4 percent decline for the F-Series, the line met its goal of selling 900,000 units.
Japanese automakers continued to perform well during 2005 with Nissan, Honda and Toyota all announcing sales increases.
The Georgetown, Ky.,-built Toyota Camry remained the best-selling car in the United States with 431,703 units sold, a 1.4 percent increase from 2004. Toyota plans to unveil a new version of the vehicle Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The Georgetown-built Avalon sedan had its best year since 2000 with 95,318 vehicles sold.
Article (http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060105/BUSINESS/601050338/1003)
Last year, Ford sold 29 percent fewer Explorers, most of which are built at its Louisville plant on Fern Valley Road. High-gas prices and new vehicles drew customers away from traditional sport utility vehicles.
The TrailBlazer also had a tough year with sales dropping 14 percent to 244,150, just beating Explorer's sales of 239,788.
Michael Robinet, an analyst with CSM Worldwide in Detroit, said the Explorer should retake its sales crown this year as GM is expected to cut several TrailBlazer versions while Ford plans to reintroduce its Explorer Sport Trac pickup.
But neither Robinet nor Ford sales analyst George Pipas are expecting gains in SUV sales.
"The world is moving on. There are still customers for these kinds of vehicles, but not as many as a few years ago," Robinet said. He added that many former SUV customers are choosing sedans or crossover, SUV-like vehicles built on car frames instead of truck frames.
Pipas said if gas prices stay stable, he expects the Explorer to see about the same number of sales this year as it did last year. If gas prices climb back above $2.50, double-digit sales declines are possible, he said.
Sales recovered somewhat last month from November, the Explorer's worst month ever. Ford started selling the redesigned 2006 Explorer in the fall.
"September and October were disasters across the board, and it was against this backdrop that we launched the new Explorer," Pipas said, adding that during those months, gasoline prices soared above $3 per gallon, and car buyers were staying out of showrooms following the summer's huge discounts.
Last month's sales were an improvement from November, when Ford sold 11,792 Explorers. Pipas said the 61 percent gain from that month is a sign that the Explorer, built in Louisville and St. Louis, is "picking up momentum."
Ford had expected declines for the Explorer and its other SUVs, and at the beginning last year ended one of two production shifts in St. Louis. But as SUV sales sagged, each plant went through 10 weeks of temporary layoffs as Ford tried to cut inventories. The St. Louis plant will also be shut down for the first three weeks of this year.
When plants are on layoff, workers collect state unemployment insurance benefits and Ford payments that add up to about 95 percent of typical weekly wages.
Ford plans to unveil a restructuring Jan. 23 that the company has said will include plant closures. Several analysts have said the St. Louis plant is likely to be closed.
The Louisville plant, running two shifts, can meet current estimates of Explorer demand.
Not all of the news was bad for Ford's Louisville plants. The company sold 901,436 F-Series pickups, including F-Series Super Duty trucks made at the Kentucky Truck Plant in eastern Jefferson County.
While that represented a 4 percent decline for the F-Series, the line met its goal of selling 900,000 units.
Japanese automakers continued to perform well during 2005 with Nissan, Honda and Toyota all announcing sales increases.
The Georgetown, Ky.,-built Toyota Camry remained the best-selling car in the United States with 431,703 units sold, a 1.4 percent increase from 2004. Toyota plans to unveil a new version of the vehicle Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The Georgetown-built Avalon sedan had its best year since 2000 with 95,318 vehicles sold.
Article (http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060105/BUSINESS/601050338/1003)