GM’s U.S. vehicle sales fell 1.5% in the first quarter, underperforming other major automakers

DETROIT – General Motors on Tuesday reported a 1.5% decline in U.S. vehicle sales in the first quarter from a 12 months ago as the overall auto industry returns to normal after years of disruption and unstable performance.

The Detroit automaker said the decline to 594,233 vehicles sold in the first three months of the 12 months was mainly as a result of a 22.9% year-over-year decline in sales to fleet customers. Retail sales to customers rose 6%, GM said.

GM’s sales were in line with Cox Automotive estimates but below industry expectations. The automotive data firm forecasts that U.S. auto industry sales will increase 5.5% from a 12 months earlier.

Buick was the only GM brand to post sales growth in the quarter, up 16.4% from a 12 months earlier. The GMC truck brand is down about 5%, while Cadillac and Chevrolet are down about 2%.

GM said first-quarter sales of full-size pickup trucks were about 197,000 units, up 3.6% from a 12 months earlier, marking its best performance for the period since the first quarter of 2020.

“GM has increased retail market share year-over-year on strong product mix and pricing, our inventory remains strong heading into the spring, and production and deliveries of electric vehicles on the Ultium platform are increasing, with the Cadillac Lyriq leading the way. We are on schedule,” GM North America President Marissa West – wrote in the statement.

Sales of GM’s all-electric vehicles, closely watched by Wall Street, remained weak in the first quarter. Total electric vehicle sales were 16,425 units, representing 2.8% of the automaker’s total sales during the period.

GM is in the process of ramping up production of its newest electric vehicles, including the Cadillac Lyriq and Blazer EV, while phasing out sales of Chevrolet Bolt models that were discontinued in December.

First-quarter sales of the Blazer EV were limited at 600 units due to a sales hold that ran from late December to early March to address software issues.

Other automakers reported mixed first-quarter results as inventories and sales normalize to levels not seen since before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.

Hyundai Motor America CEO Randy Parker noted that the industry is becoming increasingly competitive as automakers try to maintain the gains of recent years without overly subsidizing sales.

“The market is changing rapidly and has become much more competitive,” Parker said Tuesday in a telephone interview.

Hyundai last month reported its best March sales ever with 76,920 vehicles sold, but first-quarter sales rose only 0.2% from a 12 months earlier.

Moreover, the Hyundai Genesis luxury brand reported sales of 14,777 vehicles in the first quarter, up 7.3% year-on-year.

Here are the sales results of other major U.S. automakers in comparison with the first quarter of 2023:

• Toyota engine recorded a 16% increase in sales, including 16.1% in March. In the first three months of the year, the company sold almost 388,000 vehicles.
• Honda engines saw sales increase by 17.3% to almost 334,000 vehicles sold, including a 10.1% increase in March.
• Kia reported sales of 179,621 vehicles in the first quarter, down 2.5% year over year.
• Nissan Group announced sales of 252,735 vehicles in the first quarter, an increase of 7.2% compared to the previous year.
• Starting an electric vehicle Rivian Automotive reported vehicle deliveries of 13,588 vehicles in the first quarter, up from 7,946 vehicles a year earlier. The company confirmed that annual production will total 57,000 vehicles, including 13,980 in the first three months of the year.