General Motors Sales Down 3.1 Percent Globally To 2.3 Million Vehicles In Q3 2015

General Motors sold 2,333,663 vehicles during the third quarter (July, August, September) of 2015, representing a decline of 3.1 percent, or 73,539 vehicles.

From a brand standpoint, Chevrolet and Wuling were the only two brands to post year-over-year sales drops, with Opel/Vauxhall, Buick, Cadillac, GMC, and Baojun all posting increases. On a market basis, only GM North America and GM Europe recorded year-over-year sales gains, while GM South America, GM International, and GM China were down.

Q3 2015 sales highlights (vs. Q3 2014):

  • Among GM’s largest markets, sales rose in the United States, the U.K. and Canada.
  • Opel/Vauxhall, Buick, Cadillac, GMC and Baojun all reported higher sales.
  • Chevrolet had record crossover sales in the United States, up 24 percent, while Chevrolet U.S. truck sales increased 16 percent.
  • Deliveries in South Korea were up 11 percent to record of nearly 43,000 units.

RegionQ3 2015 SalesQ3 2015 / Q3 2014 Unit ChangeQ3 2015 / Q3 2014 Percent ChangeTotal  SalesQ1-Q3 2015 / Q1-Q3 2014 Unit ChangeQ1-Q3 2015 / Q1-Q3 2014 Percent Change
GM North America930,758+46,110+5.2%2,685,342+126,257+4.9%
GM Europe287,690+3,137+1.1%898,236-60,131-6.3%
GM South America150,142-66,956-30.8%485,557-156,749-24.4%
GM International191,847-21,928-10.3%589,854-41,525-6.6%
GM China**773,226-33,902-4.2%2,492,428+38,215+1.6%
Total2,333,663-73,539-3.1%7,151,417-93,933-1.3%

BrandQ3 2015 SalesQ3 2015 / Q3 2014 Unit ChangeQ3 2015 / Q3 2014 Percent ChangeTotal  SalesQ1-Q3 2015 / Q1-Q3 2014 Unit ChangeQ1-Q3 2015 / Q1-Q3 2014 Percent Change
Chevrolet1,078,847-112,998-9.5%3,291,133-252,280-7.1%
Opel/Vauxhall272,619+14,007+5.4%864,338+31,256+3.8%
Buick300,33510,858++3.8%852,289+21,635+2.6%
Cadillac67,895+997+1.5%198,993+6,228+3.2%
GMC176,222+11,100+6.7%499,343+48,933+10.9%
Baojun110,977+69,395+166.9%270,488+189,857+235.5%
Wuling286,155-55,358-16.2%1,050,327-100,110-8.7%
All Others40,613-11,540-22.1%124,506-39,452-24.1%
Total2,333,663-73,539-3.1%7,151,417-93,933-1.3%

Notes:

  • GM North America = United States, Canada, Mexico, and other North American markets*
  • GM Europe = Western, Central and Eastern Europe
  • GM International = Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Middle East*
  • ** Includes China retail sales
  • * Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria and Sudan are excluded from sales volume calculations

The GM Authority staff is comprised of columnists, interns, and other reporters who provide coverage of the latest General Motors news.

GM Authority Staff

The GM Authority staff is comprised of columnists, interns, and other reporters who provide coverage of the latest General Motors news.

View Comments

  • The concerning markets are China and South America.
    Economic woes are deep seeded in South America especially without a near term end in sight.
    In China it will be interesting to see if the tax cuts announced a couple of weeks ago turn around Q4 sales volumes.

  • Your something interesting though. GN leads in most South American countries or is in the top three. Sales maybe down but I think that's indicative of the markets in general. For example the top selling car in the huge market of Brazil is a Chevy.

  • South America presents unique opportunities for GM. Already a market leader, General Motors should be using the economic down turn to destroy cash strapped rivals such as Fiat.
    GM needs to be introducing developed world quality and safety at a developing world pricepoint. (This is the long term plan with the SAIC partnership but that work will not arrive in time to take advantage of the current crisis).
    In addition, GM needs to expand Opel beyond Chile to compete against premium brands, even Ford.
    South America had more profit potential than China due to the lack of JV partners.

  • Cadillac art and science is just old and tired....the upcoming CT8 needs to look like a real flagship...more like the Elmeraj.....not just a big ATS/CTS...every Caddy looking the same just isn't cutting it.

  • all I'm asking from Cadillac is a little bit Elmeraj style in the upcoming CT8 and other upcoming cars....the Elmeraj shaped hood. is drop dead gorgeous....the Current caddys are nice... but the body shape and A&S looks 10+ years old.

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