Toyota sales down 3.5% in October

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Toyota down but Lexus surprisingly up.

Wayne Gerdes - CleanMPG - Nov. 3, 2009

2010 Lexus RX 450h – Starting at $42,110, achieves a 26 mpgUS combined rating and achieved solid sales in October.

Toyota reported October sales of 152,165 vehicles, a decrease of 3.5% from last October, on a daily selling rate basis.

The Toyota Division posted October sales of 132,663 units, a decrease of 5.8% from the same period last year. The Lexus Division reported October sales of 19,502 units, an increase of 15.5% over the year-ago month.

Toyota Oct. Sales Highlights and Lowlights

Toyota Division passenger cars recorded sales of 85,169 units, a decrease of 3.3% from last October.

Passenger car sales were led by Camry and Camry Hybrid, which posted combined October sales of 30,136 units, down 4.9%. The Prius hybrid was a highlight with October sales of 13,496 units, up 10.3% over the year-ago month.

Corolla recorded sales of 25,717 units, down 9.4%. Venza reported reasonably strong sales of 5,035 units for the month.

Toyota Division light trucks posted sales of 47,494 units, down 10.0% from the year-ago month.

Light truck sales were led by the RAV4 compact SUV with October sales of 13,971 units, up 10.2% over the same time last year. Highlander and Highlander Hybrid posted combined sales of 5,979 units for the month, off 18%. The Tacoma mid-size pickup reported sales of 8,921 units in October, down 14%. Surprisingly, the full-size Tundra P/U recorded sales of 7,537 units for the month, up 13.1% over last October. The Sienna recorded October sales of 8,249 units, off just .6%.

Scion posted October sales of 3,862 units. The xB urban utility vehicle led the way with sales of 1,782 units, down 33.8%. The tC sports coupe posted October sales of 1,057 units, down 54.2%. The xD reported sales of 1,023 units for the month, down 48.8%.

Lexus Oct. Sales Highlights

Lexus passenger cars reported October sales of 10,441 units, up 7.9% from the year-ago month. Passenger car sales were led by the ES entry luxury sedan, with sales of 4,413 units, up 2.8% over last October. The IS entry luxury sport line posted combined October sales of 3,162 units, up 10% over the same period last year.

Lexus Division light trucks reported October sales of 9,061 units, up 25.7% over the same period last year. Lexus sales were led by the RX luxury utility vehicle which posted combined October sales of 8,316 units, up 54.8% over the year-ago month. The RX 450h hybrid luxury utility vehicle reported sales of 1,567 units for the month, up 145.7% over last October.

Signs of growth within the hybrid division

TMS posted October sales of 18,757 hybrid vehicles, up 10.9% over the same period last year. Toyota Division posted sales of 15,603 hybrids for the month. Lexus Division posted October sales of 3,154 hybrids.