Besides the amazing sales resilience of the all-new RX 400h and the steadfastness of the Fit, the rest of the marketplace for all cars and trucks was a disaster.
Wayne Gerdes -
CleanMPG - Mar. 5, 2009
2009 Honda Civic Hybrid –
Now less than $20,000 with discounting and a 40 mpgUS city, 45 mpgUS highway and 42 mpgUS combined ratings on the 08 EPA.
In February, while both fuel efficient hybrids and non-hybrids were off large percentages from the same period a year ago, the HCH-II although down, appears to be stabilizing somewhat with sales down just 21.5% vs. the same period a year ago. How is that for a positive spin?
The Civic Hybrid with advanced IMA hybrid technology achieves an EPA-estimated city/highway fuel economy of 40/45 miles per gallon6 and was updated for 2009 with the addition of Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) and the availability of leather-trimmed interior which includes heated front seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel and heated side mirrors. The Civic Hybrid is certified by the California Air Resource Board (CARB) as Advanced-Technology Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle (AT-PZEV). A continuously variable transmission (CVT) is standard equipment. The Civic Hybrid can deactivate all four of its cylinders and operate using only the electric motor in certain low-speed cruising situations. Power for the Civic Hybrid is provided by a 1.3-liter i-VTEC 4-cylinder engine and a 15 kilowatt electric motor, producing a combined 110-horsepower @ 6000 rpm and combined 123 lb-ft. of torque @ 1000-2500 rpm.
In addition to the 2009 HCH-II’s
2008 CleanMPG “Car of they Year” honor and
48-Contiguous State_FE_WR, the HCH-II at its new lower price makes a mighty tempting automobile for your own garage.
Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrids
The new “Big 7” fuel efficient non-hybrids sales saw an overall decline of 29.4 percent YTD vs. the 2007. The only vehicle that escaped was the Honda Fit as all manufacturers experienced yet another free fall in total sales.
Continuing to lead the non-hybrids in total sales, the Corolla saw 18,103 new owners in February, a decrease of 11.1 percent vs. February of 2008.
The Civic had another poor sales month with just 15,687 units sold, a decline of 31.3 percent vs. February of 2008. At one point last year, it appeared the Civic would overtake the Corolla but this year is an entirely different situation with YTD sales off 33.3 percent.
The Honda Fit began the year with a slight sales increase and February proved to be no different. February sales of 4,779 vehicles yielded another slight increase of 2.3 percent compared to February of 2008.
The Toyota Yaris saw just 4,247 units sold in February, another sharp decrease of 49.0 percent vs. the same period a year ago. For the second month in a row, unusual for a car that is quite possibly the lowest total cost of ownership vehicle available in America.
The Mini’s sales fell for the second time and just like January, February MINI Cooper sales of 2,826 vehicles was down by 17.2 percent compared to the same period a year ago.
Our second monthly sales report of the Chevrolet Aveo shows yet another steep decline and worst of the reported non-hybrids. The Aveo saw just 1,564 new owners in February, down 52.6 percent from the year ago sales period. I just do not see a future for the Aveo with sales experienced the past two months.
The Smart Fortwo will be compared to its sales last year for the second time as allotments began reaching dealership showrooms in mid-January, 2008. The Fortwo was received by 1,495 new owners in February, up 28.5 percent compared to the 1,101 units sold in February of 2008.
February 2008 Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrid Sales Summary
| | | Month to Date | | | Year to Date | |
| Make and Model | February 2009 | February 2008 | DSR* % Change | February 2009 | February 2008 | DSR* % Change |
| Toyota Corolla | 18,103 | 21,202 | -11.1% | 37,341 | 41,938 | -11.0% |
| Honda Civic** | 15,687 | 23,799 | -31.3% | 23,799 | 44,792 | -33.3% |
| Honda Fit | 4,247 | 4,326 | +2.3% | 8,992 | 8,806 | +2.1% |
| Toyota Yaris | 4,779 | 9,758 | -49.0% | 9,219 | 17,424 | -47.1% |
| Mini Cooper | 2,826 | 3,415 | -17.2% | 4,908 | 5,875 | -16.5% |
| Chevrolet Aveo | 1,564 | 3,300 | -52.6% | 3,159 | 8,614 | -63.3% |
| Smart Fortwo | 1,495 | 1,101 | +28.5% | 3,191 | 1,742 | +83.2% |
DSR*: Daily Selling Rate - There were 24 selling days in the February 2009 sales period vs. 25 days in February 2008.
** Honda Civic sales include the HCH-II.
Hybrid’s
2009 Hybrid sales are still faring better than the overall market declines but again, just barely. As February came to a close, every major hybrid saw large percentage sales declines other than the surprisingly resilient Lexus RX 400h vs. the year ago period.
The Toyota Prius posted February sales of 7,232, a decline of 30.8 percent from the February 2008 sales period.
The Toyota Camry Hybrid achieved sales of 2,080 units, down 47.4 percent vs. the February 2008 sales period.
The Honda Civic Hybrid posted total sales of 1,362, down 21.5 percent vs. February of 2008.
The HiHy sold 956 units, down 48.6 percent for the February 2009 vs. February 2008 sales comparison period.
The FEH/MMH twins' saw 1,294 units sold in February, down 22.7 percent compared to the same period in 2008.
The Lexus RX 400h hybrid reported sales of 1,502 units for the month, up a surprising 36.3 percent vs. the year ago sales period. For the second month, the all-new Lexus RX400h is doing very well indeed.
Sales of GM’s hybrids saw a total of 1,087 vehicles delivered in the month of February and 2,010 hybrids YTD.
Overall sales for the Big 6 Hybrid’s were down by 35.0 percent for February 2009 vs. the 2008 sales period. This is slightly better than the overall market decline but just like last month, a decline of this percentage is not a good sign for the industry or future hybrid sales in general.
February 2009 Hybrid Sales Summary
| | | Month to Date | | | Year to Date | |
| Make and Model | February 2009 | February 2008 | DSR* % Change | February 2009 | February 2008 | DSR* % Change |
| Toyota Prius | 7,232 | 10,893 | -30.8% | 15,353 | 22,272 | -31.1% |
| Toyota Camry Hybrid | 2,080 | 4,121 | -47.4% | 3,221 | 7,871 | -59.1% |
| Honda Civic Hybrid | 1,362 | 1,808 | -21.5% | 2,438 | 3,553 | -31.4% |
| Lexus RX400h | 1,502 | 1,148 | +36.3% | 3,058 | 2,359 | +29.6% |
| Ford Escape Hybrid/Mercury Mariner Hybrid | 1,294 | 1,743 | -22.7% | 2,174 | 3,217 | -32.4% |
| Toyota Highlander Hybrid | 956 | 1,938 | -48.6% | 1,940 | 4,081 | -52.5% |
DSR*: Daily Selling Rate - There were 24 selling days for the February 2009 sales period vs. 25 days in February 2008.
Big 6 Manufacturers Overall
For the Monthly comparison, every manufacturer once again saw severe sales declines.
GM sales were down 52.9 percent,
Ford sales were down 48 percent,
Toyota sales were down 37.3 percent,
Honda sales were down 35.4 percent and Nissan whose sales were off with off 37.1 percent on a daily selling rate basis. Nissan reports on a straight-percentage basis, unadjusted for the number of selling days in the month. Chrysler sales were best of the lot, down only 26 percent.
All in, this was the worst February report in decades with GM and Chrysler all but sure to be in bankruptcy within months if not weeks.
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