General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) announced today that it delivered 2,887,046 vehicles in 2019 in the United States. The total included more than 1 million crossovers for the second year in a row, an increase of 12.7 percent compared to 2018, and more than 1 million full-size pickup trucks and SUVs.

“We’ve focused our resources on what our customers want – crossovers and trucks – and that has paid off,” said Kurt McNeil, vice president, U.S. Sales Operations. “In addition to our industry leading crossover sales, our full-size truck franchise is unmatched. We’re pleased with our full-size pickup launch and we look forward to launching our segment-leading, all-new full-size SUVs in 2020.”

Fourth quarter North American wholesales declined an estimated 25 percent year over year, due to the 40 day United Auto Workers work stoppage. This includes the company’s newly launched heavy-duty full-size pickups, which were off approximately 17 percent.

“Our fourth-quarter stocks were leaner than we wanted, but as we get ready to launch our all-new full-size SUVs, we look forward to another solid year in 2020,” McNeil added.

Fourth quarter customer deliveries totaled 735,909 units, down 6.3 percent year over year.

GM sold more than 1 million crossovers in the U.S. for the second year in a row

GM had its best year ever for crossovers, achieving yearly records in the compact, small and small luxury segments. Crossover deliveries totaled 1,165,769 for the year, up 12.7 percent versus 2018. The following nameplates saw the largest sales increases year over year:

  • Chevrolet Trax up 29.9 percent
  • GMC Acadia up 12.2 percent
  • Buick Envision up 10.2 percent
  • Buick Encore up 10.0 percent

The Chevrolet Traverse and GM’s best-selling crossover, the Chevrolet Equinox, both continued to grow, achieving their best-ever sales in 2019. The all-new Chevrolet Blazer mid-size SUV debuted in 2019 and gained retail market share nearly every month. Continuing this momentum, the Chevrolet Trailblazer small SUV will arrive in showrooms this Spring.

Cadillac crossovers saw strong gains in 2019, up 22.4 percent year over year, given a full year of sales of the all-new XT4, continued popularity of the XT5, and debut of the XT6.

The Buick Encore GX will go on sale early this year.

Chevrolet and GMC full-size pickups drove the business in 2019

  • Combined sales of the Chevrolet Silverado and the GMC Sierra were strong, totaling 802,962 pickups in 2019, while combined retail market share grew almost one full percentage point, according to J.D. Power.
  • Three out of every four full-size pickups GM sold were crew cabs.
  • Light-duty crew cab sales were up 15.1 percent compared to last year.
  • Heavy-duty crew cabs were up 2.6 percent year over year. In 2020, GM will increase capacity at Flint Assembly, where its HDs are built, by 40,000 vehicles annually.
  • GM has sold more full- and mid-size pickups combined in the U.S. than any other competitor every year for the past six years.
  • Nearly every year since 1975, GM has had the best-selling full-size truck franchise in the U.S. including full-size pickups and SUVs.

Fleet sales remain strong

  • GM’s fleet mix was 19.7 percent in the fourth quarter and 21.8 percent for the year.
  • Commercial and government deliveries made up more than half the company’s fleet sales, as planned, for the third year in a row.
  • Overall fleet sales for the year were up, driven by commercial and government sales, in spite of the 40-day UAW work stoppage.

GM operating highlights

  • GM estimates that the light vehicle SAAR in the fourth quarter was 17.1 million units.
  • Average transaction prices were a record $37,558 in the fourth quarter and a record $36,844 for the year, above industry averages, according to J.D. Power PIN.
  • GM’s incentives as a percent of ATP were 14.1 percent for the fourth quarter and 13.4 percent for the year, according to J.D. Power PIN.
  • Year-end 2019 inventory was 616,023 units, down 18.4 percent from last year.

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