Chevy Colorado Inventory At 15 Days At Beginning Of November

Supply of the Chevy Colorado continues to be critically low in the U.S., with inventory of the popular midsize pickup truck at 15 days supply as of the first week of November 2021, up from seven days just a month ago. A 60 day supply is considered optimal in the U.S. auto industry.

The bump in supply is likely due to production having resumed on September 27^th for the 2022 Chevy Colorado and (and its corporate cousin, the 2022 GMC Canyon) at the GM Wentzville plant in Missouri after being idle since September 6^th. Production was interrupted several times this year due to the ongoing global semiconductor microchip shortage, with the Wentzville facility being idled at the end of March until mid-April.

The previous lack of production of the Chevy Colorado and resulting lack of inventory has continued to result in a drop in sales volume and share for Q3 2021. Even so, the Colorado moved up to fourth place in its competitive set during the third quarter from fifth during Q2 2021.

Sales Numbers - Midsize Mainstream Pickup Trucks - Q3 2021 - USA

The Toyota Tacoma continued to command the midsize mainstream pickup truck segment with a 48 percent segment share, selling 61,335 units during Q3 2021. The Ford Ranger was a distant second with a 18 percent segment share, selling about a third as many units at 22,674 (see running Ford Ranger sales). The next three competitors posted similar segment shares, cumulatively accounting for less than a third of that market. The Jeep Gladiator was in third place with an 11 percent segment share selling 14,335 units, followed by the Chevy Colorado in fourth with a 10 percent segment share selling 12,696 units, and the Nissan Frontier in fifth with a 9 percent segment share selling 11,667 units. The GMC Canyon was last with a segment share of only 4 percent selling just 5,479 units (see GMC Canyon sales).

The Tacoma, Gladiator, and Frontier saw an increase in sales volume, with the Frontier posting a whopping 62 percent bump, likely as a result of better availability of the recently-overhauled model. The remaining entries posted declines, with the Colorado dropping 53 percent and the Canyon dropping 15 percent.

We expect Colorado sales to return to higher volumes once production and inventory return to normal. That might not happen any time soon given that Wentzville recently moved from three to two shifts. The only good news for the Colorado currently is that demand for the truck continues to be strong, especially for the more off-road-oriented models. In addition, the upcoming next-gen 2023 Chevy Colorado and 2023 GMC Canyon have not yet been delayed by the chip shortage.

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