General Motors’ market share issue has once again bit the automaker, with Volkswagen AG passing GM for second place in global sales across the board. Toyota was number one.
Volkwagen sold 9.73 million cars and trucks in 2013 versus GM’s 9.71 million. Now, 2 million doesn’t seem like a giant difference but ze Germans have been producing heavy-duty truck sales from its MAN SE and Scania AB divisions, which are market segments that the Detroit-based automaker currently does not compete in.
In front of both Volkwagen and GM, Toyota sold an amazing 9.98 million cars to keep the crown as the number one automaker in the world. Its sales included its subsidiaries Hino Motors and Daihatsu units.
Comments
Yes, 2 million is a giant difference, and no, the ACTUAL difference is NOT 2 million, it is 20 thousand!!
Then GM needs to get Back into the Heavy Duty Truck Sales game……What’s the Hold Up???? Yea, they are doing some turn over with the Launch of New Product, but………If they can’t Multi-Task by now, they are in Deep Shit!!! But I know they can and I know they got some Beast planned in the Heavy Truck market a coming!! 😉 Why not start by purchasing Kenworth Trucks, I think it would look even more Gorgeous with a GMC badge on it?? 🙂 🙂 What do you think Gang……
Reasons:
1. VW has better brand identity and a fiercely loyal customer base in Europe.
2.Their products look and feel solid. Today’s Audis and VWs look high tech and modern, but they also look like direct descendants of the cars that came before them. They don’t produce a Daewoo, and call it a Cruze.
3.They don’t jump on bandwagons and call things “eco” that aren’t. They would never call an engine Ecotec3.
4. They take pride even in the less important models. Pontiac Aztec would have never happened. Neither would have Chevy Cavalier.
5. The different divisions (Skoda, Seat, Lambo, Audi, VW, Bugatti) have very distinct flavors and options even if some cars share parts and platforms. At GM, the difference between Sierra and Silverado are the stickers.
6.They never forget the importance of the driver – you can still get a manual!
“6.They never forget the importance of the driver – you can still get a manual!”
Offering manuals is a benefit? VWG is the leading proponent of DCT’s, and if I’m going to buy a Huracan , I don’t want to go slower with a stick, that’s why the Huracan is not only a ‘drivers’ car’, but only offers a DCT.
Here is the deal
#1 VW sells more cars and very little in the way of trucks. Trucks are only a real strength in North American and small markets globally.
#2 Audi is well sorted and gaining strength globally. They are year ahead of where Buick and Cadillac are now. Also Cadillac has yet to really gain a global share of the market outside China yet.
#3 VW has just finally gained traction in China. They have had issue there and now are selling well.
#4 Dominates Europe and has for a long time. GM really has only a small share of Europe and this put them at a disadvantage here.
#5 VW has been a global company since the 1950’s and GM is just now embracing a global approach to the market vs. a piece meal attack with a dozen different brands in a number of different markets.
On the other hand.
#1 GM has now gone global and is just at the start of building the market
#2 VW really has no trucks and will never dominate here as GM does. The truck to some look as an issue but here it is automatic money. The key is to deal with the coming CAFE changes as those in office are not done yet.
#3GM has as strong presents in China and it will continue to increase.
#4 GM is just now rebuilding Cadillac and Buick and we have yet to see the fruits of these investments. It will take time but they will grow and increase volume.
#5 GM is just now about 5 years out of the bail out. You can only get so much done as the needs were great and you only have so much money you can invest at one time and only so much man power available. You can not remake every model and ever division at one time. What GM is doing is ambitious and will pay off but It will take some time. In the mean while they will lose a little ground here and there to the others who have been at this a lot longer. VW has had a longer lead time and even Ford had 7-8 years lead from their loans. .
VW cars are no more solid than anyone else. The recalls and quality issues of the past 5 years have been worse than GM.
I wish people would drop this Daewoo BS. There is nothing wrong with the Cruse and GM had as much to do with this as anyone as Daewoo is dominated with GM people and has been for a good while. It is just like a Cruze built here in Ohio or Korea they are just the same and nothing is wrong.
There is nothing wrong with GMC and Chevy as one is profitable and the other is even more profitable. They are funding much of the car revamps so you do not bite the hand that feed you. Now if GMC was losing money then yes but they are not and one of the most profitable centers in GM.
As for the rest of VW’s line up they are either companies they bought or have owned for a while no different than Opel, Holden, Vauxhall, Chevy of India, South America or even Asia.
VW takes a Audi sports car and re bodies it as a Lambo or vise a versa much of the engines and drivel lines are shared and it is not a whole lot different than GMC and Chevy. Also you can not discount the fact GM will move GMC farther and farther away as time moves on.
As for the standard shift yes VW has more but that Is because of Europe. Outside Europe the numbers drop. Add in the fact that most markets are now at 5% manual shift and that the EPA regulations are getting more and more difficult to meet the manual may end up dying out like it or not. Hell people don’t even steal them because so few know how to drive them. I like Manual Trannies but I can not lie and say things will get better if they just build them. If there was greater demand there would be more.
Also note GM has claimed the new Vette shuns the DCT because their new Transmission that benchmarked the PDK is faster according to Tadge. More expensive and complex is not always better we should find out soon with the Z06 test drive.
In all it is way too soon to panic here and make a big deal. GM is still rebuilding in a brutal competitive market. It may take a step back till the investments come in and start producing. We have at least 5 more years just to get to where GM needs to be and then they can build on this. I have said all along rebuilding GM is a 10 year deal if all goes well. So far so good but they still have a lot of work to do. the rise of Buick and more investment in Opel should be seen in the next 5 years as well as the growth of Cadillac not only here but to have them establish a base in Europe. No they will not dominate Europe right away and they may never be number one but if they establish a good solid profitable market that is a big win.
VW has enough issues in the states right now as they have not grown as they would have liked and right now they are in risk of going UAW in TN. This could be a big disadvantage if they do in the long run driving up cost. They are bringing a medium size truck here but odds are it will not fare much better than most other imports. It will sell but not in GM or Ford numbers.
Note too that GM does not have to be number one in Europe in anything. Just profitable and stable. VW is not near number one here and that is all they strive to do. We sell more cars here than there so that is another advantage. China will be the fight for number one.
Scott,
Are you seriously comparing Buick to Audi?
You’re right though a VW car probably is just as unreliable as a GM car, I meant solid in design language and the well bolted together feeling, that is still unique to Euro cars.
Cruze? The thing looks like a Daewoo, and is a Daewoo. Yes, a Daewoo is a step up from a Cobalt but still not a serious car. The name Cruze is a play on the word “cruise”, and is really just a Mexican last name. What’s next, will they call an engine family EEcotecthreee? No wait that has already happened. Maybe the ones that don’t catch on fire are the EEcotecfour.
“The name Cruze is a play on the word “cruise”, and is really just a Mexican last name.”
1650s, from Dutch kruisen “to cross, sail to and fro,” from kruis “cross,” from Latin crux; cf. the sense evolution in cognate cross (v.). Related: Cruised; cruising. As a noun from 1706.
Source: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=cruise
Do a fact check next time, and don’t perpetuate the stereotype of the uneducated American.
Not comparing todays Buick to Audi but where the next generation of product will go. Buick will cover the lower end of Audi as Cadillac will take the upper end models on. There is no reason a good well engineered Buick/Opel could not take on the likes of a Audi 4 and even a 5 along with the smaller SUV model.
They also will challenge Acura and Lexus too. Buick has a lot of room to work with the new product as they will take the gap between the Chevy and Cadillac lines. With Cadillac getting more and more expensive this lower end luxury will be open to them.
No they will not do it with the present cars they have as one is a left over sedan and the other two are Opels that are at the end of their live span on this platform. I would also expect to see Buick make good use of AWD as they are in the price range where they can do it.
The Cruze is a very viable car and still a very popular car selling 248,224 US sales last year.
VW as a whole sold VW, including its Audi, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini luxury brands, hit 580,286 last year. So GM has been selling an older car that is about to be replaced with an even better car that sold almost half of VW USA sold in all their cars.
You may not like it but it is a very popular car and has been doing a good job selling and durability.
What is your issue with the Eco as it has sold in the millions and has had few issues. GM will be getting over 300 HP from a 2.0 very soon in a production car. I drive one now with 300 HP and no issues even at 23 PSI Boost.
While you may not like the Cruze and the Eco they are profit centers and very competitive. Both are in for an upgrade very soon that will take them over many of the models on the market that have caught up.
You can hate them but if you want to be creditable you have to take them for what they are and what they have done. You can also stop the lame Daewoo piss and moan as that does not wash anymore. This is not the age of the Pontiac Lemans anymore.
GM now is global and work on each model is now being done globally and not in just one market. GM is now one and not a dozen divisions all doing something different. Often the people staffing these off shore sites are not even native to where the facility is. Many Americans are now in Korea, Germany and Australia whole many of these other people from overseas are now in Detroit.
As for Cruze it also can be a first name like the racer Cruze Pedregon he is not even Hispanic. You can not just make things up and expect credibility in your other statements. It ain’t bragging if you can back it up.
Grawdaddy, I already told you I am not an American. I did know Cruze meant cross but thought it was beyond most people’s IQ here as y’all don’t know how to spell.
To all who didn’t notice the obvious: The above article is about GM failing, even after an unprecedented financial shot in the arm by Uncle Sam. They are going down while others are going up. This is partly due to the deficiencies I mentioned.
I don’t care if you’ve stated previously that you’re not an American; you’re trying your damnedest to fit the stereotype irrespective of your nationality. Saying the Cruze is “really just a Mexican last name” isn’t helping your case.
Beyond that, as for us not giving much worry to this article, relax. The only people who worry themselves over global sales are the fluffers; people who value the short-term meaning of total units and not the profitability of the whole.
The same thing can apply to the “historic” battle between Lincoln and Cadillac. Whereas a Lincoln fluffer still measures success in unit sales, Cadillac’s success is measured in product, MSRP, and residuals.
I also don’t care about the bailout. It’s not like GM was the first organization to get federal money, or the last.
I think you’ve come to GMA expecting us to be in state of “moral panic” over news of GM’s 3rd place rank.
Well said Grawdaddy, people who don’t understand the industry fail to realize that market share comes after credibility, trust, and respect things that GM management are working hard to earn back.
Not that big of a deal, most of GM’s lineup is going to be replaced by next year anyways. On top of that, who cares if VW has the lead, GM will just take the lead again next year, the only reason VW is doing well is because it has so many more brands, and Toyota is doing nothing but the same crap pre-bankruptcy GM used to do to maintain market share.