Automakers Break U.S. Sales Record in 2016

By the middle of last year, experts were warning that auto sales had plateaued after a long run of tremendous growth for the industry. But, with the help of strong demand (and generous incentives) in December, the auto industry managed to pull off another record year in 2016.

It was a close call. Total sales jumped around 56,000 units from 2015, an increase of just 0.3 percent. The year 2016 marks the seventh straight year of sales gains for the industry, reportsAutomotive News.

Hefty incentives during the end of 2016 played a role. Citing data from ALG, the report says average incentives on new vehicles jumped 20 percent last month compared to December 2015, to an average of $3,673. General Motors and Volkswagen Group were some of the biggest winners last month, posting double-digit sales gains. However, both ended up with negative numbers when you tally up the entire sales for the year.

Most major automakers posted modest gains or declines in 2016. Here's a look at how the biggest automakers performed last year:

General Motors (-1.3 percent, 3,042,775 vehicles)

GM's sales increased 10 percent in December, exceeding expectations. But it wasn't enough to help the automaker beat its sales numbers for 2015, as every one of GM's brands but Buick experienced a drop in sales through December last year. The automaker's best-selling vehicles last year was (unsurprisingly) the Chevrolet Silverado, followed by the Equinox and Malibu.

Ford(-0.4 percent, 2,614,697 vehicles)

Ford's weak spot last year was its passenger cars. The Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, and Taurus all suffered double-digit declines in 2016. Fortunately, sales of SUVs and trucks remained strong, with the Edge jumping 8.4 percent, the Expedition up 44.4 percent, and the best-selling F-Series up 5.2 percent. Flex also increased a healthy 15.8 percent. Although sales of the Mustang were down from last year, Ford managed to sell about 33,000 more copies than Chevy sold of its Camaro.

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FCA (-<1 percent, 2,244,315 vehicles)

Last year was an eventful one for FCA. Not only did it siphon off its Ferrari brand to help unload some of its debt, but it also introduced long-awaited Jeep SUVs and even a new Alfa Romeo SUV. It also ended production of its unsuccessful Chrysler 200 and Dodge Dart sedans to focus on SUVs and trucks. Jeep and Ram ended up on the positive end of the sales spectrum, while Chrysler, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Dodge suffered declines. Top sellers among each brand included the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Chrysler Pacifica, Dodge Caravan, Ram pickup, Alfa Romeo 4C, and the Fiat 500.

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Toyota(-2 percent, 2,449,630 vehicles)

Toyota started off 2016 giving its Scion brand the axe. Still, Toyota saw success in the SUV and crossover department. Highlander sales leaped 20.4 percent, while the RAV4 increased 11.6 percent, and the 4Runner was up 15.4 percent. Sales for the Lexus brand were down a total of 3.9 percent.

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Honda(+3.2 percent, 1,637,942 vehicles)

Finally a major automaker celebrating a sales increase in 2016. In fact, Honda says it broke an all-time sales record. Now in its 10th generation, the Civic performed quite well, with sales jumping 9.4 percent. The new HR-V also drew in more buyers than last year, as did the Fit. However, sales of the Odyssey and the Pilot dropped off from last year. Acura sales were also down 8.9 percent.

Nissan(+5.4 percent, 1,564,423 vehicles)

Last year, Nissan set a new overall sales record, as well as individual sales records for the Rogue, Murano, NV200, and NV. The Rogue is Nissan's best-selling model for the first time ever, with the Altima sedan coming in second. Last year also saw big gains for the Titan, Frontier, and Maxima.

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Other automakers

After trimming the Mazda2 and Mazda5 from its lineup, Mazda sales dropped 6.7 percent last year to a total of 297,773 units. Slowing sales of the Mazda3, Mazda6, and CX-9 contributed to the decline. The Volkswagen Group reports its U.S. sales separately for each brand. Still in the throes of dieselgate, its namesake brand plunged 7.6 percent to 322,948 units.

Meanwhile, Subaru set a new sales record of 615,132 vehicles, jumping 5.6 percent from 2015. Hyundai and Kia also set new records, selling 775,005 and 647,598 units, respectively.

Source: The Automakers, Automotive News (Subscription required)