GM, Toyota, Ford Say U.S. Sales Fell After ‘Clunkers’ Aid Ended

[FarCenter]

By Jeff Green and Katie Merx

Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and Ford Motor Co. said sales fell in September as waning demand after the “cash for clunkers” rebates may have cut industry deliveries to the second-slowest rate this year.

GM deliveries tumbled 45 percent, while Toyota dropped 13 percent, both worse than analysts had estimated. Ford slid 5.1 percent, and Chrysler Group LLC, Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. also posted declines.

“We knew sales would slow down significantly after the cash for clunkers surge,” said Stephen Spivey, senior auto analyst at Frost & Sullivan in San Antonio. “October will tell you what kind of rebound comes off that dip.”

The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate slid to 9.3 million vehicles, based on the average of 8 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. July and August were the only months in 2009 when the industry benchmark topped 10 million, a level that Ford and researcher J.D. Power & Associates expect the U.S. to surpass for the year.

<SNIP>http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a0QFjrJ95Kkk

[taught_me_patience]

1. It's called demand shifting

and many DUers sniffed it out from the beginning. In time, Cash For Clunkers will be seen as a complete and total failure.

[napi21]

2. Are they surprised? I'm not! n/t

[DesertFlower]

3. i'm certainly not. nt

[DJ13]

4. Consumer targeted programs do more harm than good unless

they are long term programs so that they dont cannibalize future sales by forcing people to buy in a short period of time.

The Cash for Clunkers program should have been less generous, but at least a year (or even two) in duration to stabilize the automakers.

Now they are right back in a collapsed market with no relief in sight.

[AllentownJake]

5. Surprise, Surprise

You offer an incentive to purchase a capital asset in one month and sales fall the next month who would have ever guessed that would happen?

[Romulox]

6. I've said it before: C4C was both bizarre and ill conceived. nt