Auto Sales Plunge As Credit Crunch Hits

[Purveyor]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Major automakers reported plunging U.S. sales for September on Wednesday -- led by a 34 percent slide at Ford Motor Co -- as an escalating credit emergency slammed a slumping industry and raised new doubts about when the world's largest auto market would hit bottom.

The downturn in auto sales for September coincided with a crisis on Wall Street and claimed even the auto industry's better-performing brands.

Sales were down 24 percent at Honda Motor Co Ltd, 32 percent at Toyota Motor Corp and 37 percent at Nissan Motor Co Ltd.

U.S. industry sales leader General Motors Corp, which was more aggressive in discounting its vehicles, managed to keep its September sales decline to a relatively small 16 percent to take a larger share of a rapidly declining market.

"Consumers and businesses are in a very fragile place," Ford sales chief Jim Farley said. "An already weak economy compounded by very tight credit conditions has created an atmosphere of caution."

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE4907WT20081001

[Coventina]

1. One of the talking heads on the NewsHour last night advised

people to not buy cars right now unless they really need them.

That's probably not advice the auto-companies and auto-workers are thrilled about...

[Kolesar]

5. yeah, that annoyed me

It's not like my automobile is a luxury. I use it to commute and go shopping. And when it is looking old and getting to need a lot of repairs, I want to replace it.

[Eugene]

2. Reuters: Chrysler's September U.S. sales fall 33 percent

Source: Reuters

Chrysler's September U.S. sales fall 33 percent
Wed Oct 1, 2008 3:27pm EDT

DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler LLC said on Wednesday its
U.S. sales fell 33 percent in September to 107,349
vehicles because of a highly volatile economic environment
and reduced fleet and lease volume.

"The economy is going through a difficult restructuring,
resulting in great uncertainty among consumers," Jim Press,
Chrysler Vice Chairman and President, said in a statement.

Chrysler's car sales declined 29 percent, while its truck
sales declined 34 percent.

Chrysler also announced a new consumer incentive program,
featuring cash rebates and low-cost loans, on 2008 model-
year vehicles.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE49083020081001

[indepat]

4. Should auto sales continue to slide by this magnitude, could the US slowly drift toward a mild

recession? :P

[nilram]

9. very mild. no--very, very mild

:rofl:

[xchrom]

3. recommend

[KakistocracyHater]

6. new car & house buying should be decoupled gdp

It should NOT be a 'measure' of U.S. economic health. New car buying used to be once every 7 yrs, then buying & leasing shrank to once every 5yrs, now 3yrs=madness. One buys ones' first house, 'starter house' & this is culturally reinforced. Every commercial break has at least 1 car/truck ad & always fast food ads, this is a tremendous unconscious message being pushed onto tv viewers.

Healthy economic growth, slowly, with a strengthening of the weakest areas should be the goal. Not rapid growth modeled on an explosion=growth without end, what else to call that, a bubble? No more short-product lifecycle, no more building homes that may not get water because they don't have to take a water supply into account. Ask why the Country Club Class is destroying America.

[LatteLibertine]

7. There are

many good suggestions that don't include giving 700+ billion to the folks that created this mess so they can make more. Hopefully some of those sound recommendations get implemented in a bipartisan fashion without hosing the US taxpayer.

[CubicleGuy]

8. It's all about the credit

Unfortunately, everybody's already maxed out, so more credit really isn't going to do us a lot of good. We have to pay off what we've already bought.

Maybe the car manufacturers need to focus on expanding the McCain market. I'm not sure he owns enough cars yet. I'm sure Cindy can afford another one.

[erinlough]

10. My husband works at a parts department of a dealership

Today he came home and told me he is probably going to be let go in order for the dealership to try to make it. He is 57. Yeah, let the fat cats fall.........Don't prop up the ones who made this mess........The problem with that reasoning is that they have the resources to wait out a recession, many of the rest of us don't. I'm not whining and I'm not sure that the bailout will even help us, but making flip statements about letting the economy fail is shortsighted in my opinion.

[mikeargo]

11. Not good news...

My sister works in a plant that supplies parts to the auto industry. This morning she was informed that the plant is closing in six months.