How’s that for a headline? Sounds like I’ve been spending some time at spin school, right?
September 2008 has indeed turned out to be Black September. This month could definitely turn out to be Red October. Here’s the opening paragraphs from Automotive News’ coverage of the sales month, just to let you know how bad thing were across the whole industry:
U.S. auto sales plunged to 15-year lows in September as the nation’s financial crisis and tight credit kept buyers away from showrooms.
Toyota Motor Corp. fell 32 percent, for its biggest monthly decline in at least four decades. Honda Motor Co. plunged 24 percent. Ford Motor Co. posted its 10th straight monthly decline as its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands dropped 34 percent. General Motors was down 16 percent, and Chrysler LLC fell 33 percent.
Industry sales fell 27 percent to 965,160 light vehicles — the first submillion sales month since January 1993. It extended the industry’s slump to 11 months of falling sales compared with the previous year’s results.
So with the mighty Toyota falling 32 percent for the month, Saab’s fall of just 27.2 percent might just be cause for celebration. Click here to check out the entire US industry, brand by brand.
OK, maybe not. But whilst I still consider that there’s a certain amount of boneheaddery going on in the Saabian halls of the Renaissance Center, not even I can pin these numbers on a marketing problem, or some such. This is plain-and-simple the worst conditions for selling cars since the early 1990s.
So, on to the numbers.
Saab sold a total of 1,765 vehicles in September, a fall of 27.2% from the 2,424 sold in the same month last year.
Individual models:
Saab 9-3: there were 1,281 units of the Saab 9-3 sold, a fall from 1802 last year (down 28.9%)
Saab 9-5: there were 176 units of the Saab 9-5 sold, a fall from 276 last year (down 26.2%)
Saab 9-7x: the surprise packet of the bunch. There were 308 units of the Saab 9-7x sold, down just 11% from the 346 sold last year.
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8 responses so far ↓
1 Matt
// Oct 2, 2008 at 8:05 am
I’m one of those who passed on Toyota for the Saab. Their used cars are ridiculously overpriced right now. A used Saab off a lease is a steal right now!
2 1985 Gripen
// Oct 2, 2008 at 8:41 am
I second Matt’s point. A couple weekends ago we bought a CPO 2005 9-5 Arc SportWagon for $5 over the wholesale price, and that included the CPO warranty that will have us covered until April 2011. We got this “like new” car (I believe it was a 3-year lease return) for roughly a third of the price it cost new. A steal. Even has the warranty. Also, got 3.9% financing from GMAC. This is something GM is touting for their other marques today, but not for Saab for some reason, even though that’s the finance rate I got. We financed the purchase over 5 years, and including the year of payments we still owed on our prior CPO Saab (a 2001 9-3 5-door) which we rolled-over into the new financing, we’re paying only $5 a month more in our monthly car payment than we did on the 9-3. I never would have guessed I could afford a 9-5!!!
I was just reading a report over at Consumer Reports (I know, boo! hiss!) about what a great deal used cars are over new cars. They point-out that you can get a used Porsche Boxster for the same price as a new Ford Mustang.
3 1985 Gripen
// Oct 2, 2008 at 8:43 am
This is something Saab probably doesn’t want you to read!!!
4 eggsngrits
// Oct 2, 2008 at 8:51 am
That’s thinking on the bright side. I wondered how you were going to play that reading only the title!
5 Kroum
// Oct 2, 2008 at 9:37 am
Saab is also no longer the smallest mass manufacturer to sell cars in the U.S. - hand the title back to Porsche now please. Saab sold 1,765 vehicles in September, Porsche only managed 1,458 (a 45% drop).
6 WooDz
// Oct 2, 2008 at 5:23 pm
I think there’s no doubt that after 20 years we’re just about to fall into another global recession. When we heard the news that Saab would cut production due to lack of sales in the US, We were all disheartened; however cutting 20 or 30,000 units to offset a fall in global sales has no real great impact. No factory has been closed and nobody lost their job. If Toyota or VAG have to start cutting production to compensate for say a 30% loss in the next couple of years the cause and effect will be monstrous. We won’t be talking about a score thousand units the big companies will be dealing in Millions, maybe a cut as much as 3 million pa. Those sort of figures mean layoffs, and plant closures.
Sometimes it’s good to be small…
7 RMinNJ
// Oct 3, 2008 at 8:11 am
Interesting. I thought for sure that BMW would be up as there are many new dealers by me and
everyone seems to want one. The report shows that everyone wants an Audi or Mini? Bet they’re
still leasing vehicles also.
I have a CPO Saab (obviously from after a lease). If Saab is no longer leasing it seems there won’t be any 2009 models to buy used/CPO in say 2013? Bad for the used car buyers like me. The used cars must come from somewhere. Really bad for everyone.
8 Tompa
// Oct 3, 2008 at 8:50 am
The 9-4X and NG9-5 is welcome say…. Now. And ad the 9-3X aswell