Pontiac was GM's best-selling brand in 2000??

[mustang84]

I stumbled over this nice Wiki chart of top sales figures in the US since 1899. It's amazing how nobody was able to touch Ford between 1911 and 1926, and then the 1927 Chevy came in and swooped up top sales and Chevy's first million units in a year. It seems Chevy and Ford duked it out for the top spot between the Great Depression and about 1971, then Chevy entered a first place winning streak until Ford barely edged above in 1988. In 1990, Ford regained first place for another 10 consecutive years.

What amazes me is that Pontiac was GM's best selling brand in 2000. Anybody have any idea how this might have happened? I can't think of any major Pontiac debuts in 2000 that would have picked up sales.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Automobile_Production_Figures

Edited February 17, 2010 by mustang84

[Satty]

Heavy fleets+Chevy dropping off 60,000 units from the year before

[Robert Hall]

The key factoid is those are cars only, trucks aren't included, which would double Chevy's number or more..

[regfootball]

sunfire, grand am, grand prix, bonneville all big sellers. montana sold well also.

those first four pontiacs were often top ten or top top twenty on the charts.

an example of GM pissing away a good thing.

also an example of the brand equity pontiac has. if it were used properly.

[NINETY EIGHT REGENCY]

Bonneville was redesigned for 2000. the slogan was "luxury with attitude"

[CSpec]

I don't understand what this list is--cars by American companies produced in America? If so it leaves out Canadian and Mexican production for US marques, not to mention imports.

[Robert Hall]

I don't understand what this list is--cars by American companies produced in America? If so it leaves out Canadian and Mexican production for US marques, not to mention imports.

Yes, it looks like the list is US brands built in the US. Import brand US production and non-US NA production would be separate numbers.

[balthazar]

>>"It's amazing how nobody was able to touch Ford between 1911 and 1926, and then the 1927 Chevy came in and swooped up top sales and Chevy's first million units in a year."<<

Keep in mind Ford shut down production for more than half of the model year to switch over to Model A production; this was not 'the superior Chevy shut down Ford' per say.

[daves87rs]

Just strange...

[intrigued]

Its so frusterating to me that Olds was outselling Buick from like 1998-2000 before it was cancelled. Typical GM think at the time, "We have to get rid of one of our middle brands. Let's get rid of the brand that has a totally new lineup of fresh well reviewed cars with unique engines and content that we've invested billions into that is outseling our more coservative retired person brand whos clientel is dying off! That makes sense!"

ahhhhh!!!

[vonVeezelsnider]

With these numbers also bear in mind that the bulk of Chevy Truck production was missed in Mexico and Canada as well as the Oshawa plant which at the time was plugging out Centuries, Regals, Impalas and Monte Carlos but not Pontiacs. Bear in mind that the Buick numbers do not include Century or Regal so they probably outsold Olds all told.

[67impss]

Not buying the Buick out selling Olds thing till the wind down I would need to see real stats on that one

[SAmadei]

Not buying the Buick out selling Olds thing till the wind down I would need to see real stats on that one

Standard catalog:

1996 O: 394,016 B: 427,316

1997 O: 211,000* B: 438,064

1998 O: 239,572 B: 431,142

1999 B: 408,132

2000 B: 475,000*

2001 B: 339,000*

2002 B: 350,602

* Total was not figured, I estimated this by adding models together.

Wiki:

1996 O: 300,032 B: 342,538

1997 O: 277,086 B: 287,655

1998 O: 291,064 B: 212,780

1999 B: 216,652

2000 B: 209,328

So all the numbers are all somewhat off. I imagine von is right and the Canadian Buicks aren't being counted... but why is Olds off?

Edited February 17, 2010 by SAmadei