Beyond The Numbers: Full-Size Pickup Year-to-Date Sales
J.D. Power and Associates' June 2009 sales data shows a steep 36 percent decline in sales of full-size pickup trucks through the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2008. The data also show some surprising shifts in market share as manufacturers compete for remaining sales volume with new trucks and aggressive incentives.
J.D. Power's Power Information Network figures are unique because they break full-size truck sales out into light- and heavy-duty classes. Monthly figures released by Chrysler, Ford and GM aggregate light- and heavy-duty truck sales into a single number without revealing class splits.
According to PIN, total combined sales of light- and heavy-duty pickups reached only 513,088 units through June 2009, compared with 800,999 units sold in the first half of 2008. The best-selling brand was Ford’s F-Series trucks, with combined F-150, F-250 and F-350 sales of 173,646 units, good for 33.8 percent of the market. That’s up almost a full point from 2008, and it’s 4.6 percent more than the Chevrolet Silverado. Sales of the Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500 reached 149,949 units and 29.2 percent of the market, an increase of just a third of a point versus 2008. The Dodge Ram, at 94,516 units, gained the most market share of any full-size truck. Combined sales of the Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 grew by 2.3 points, from 16.1 percent to 18.4 percent. GMC, Toyota and Nissan all saw their shares of the full-size-truck market drop. The GMC Sierra fell from 10.4 to 9.8 percent, and the Toyota Tundra lost a full 2.6 points (with unit volume shrinking by almost half, from 76,516 units to 36,106 units). Nissan continues to be a marginal player in full-size trucks, as the future of its Titan half-ton remains in limbo. Nissan’s market share slid from 2.1 percent to 1.7 percent of all full-size truck sales.
Full-Size Truck Winners: Dodge, Ford, Chevrolet
Full-Size Truck Losers: Toyota, Nissan, GMC
In the light-duty segment, most domestic half-ton pickups increased their market share at the expense of Nissan and Toyota. The Chevrolet Silverado’s slice grew from 31.5 percent to 32.4 percent, continuing its reign as the best-selling half-ton pickup truck in the U.S. at 119,959 units sold. That’s probably news to some readers because, as we mentioned earlier, monthly sales figures announced by the manufacturers aggregate sales of light- and heavy-duty pickups but some news outlets incorrectly report the F-150 as the best-selling vehicle (and pickup) when they are really reporting total F-Series sales. The F-150 was able to increase share from 28 percent of the half-ton segment to 29.1 percent.
The all-new Dodge Ram 1500’s sales results deserve some special recognition. It bucks the conventional wisdom that new truck buyers wouldn’t want a Chrysler product while the company was going through bankruptcy and receiving bailouts from the federal government, and that core truck buyers prefer extra hauling capability over ride comfort – the Ram 1500 uses rear coil springs instead of conventional leafs that provide a much smoother unloaded ride but keep hauling and towing ratings the same as the old Ram 1500. The result: Ram 1500 market share increased the most of any half-ton pickup, from 13.6 percent to 15.8 percent. That 2.2 point jump is twice as much as the increase the new F-150 was able to carve out.
GMC, Toyota and Nissan all lost share, with Toyota dropping the most. The Tundra saw 3.2 points of market share evaporate in the first half of 2009 while the Sierra 1500 and Titan lost one-half point each.
Half-Ton Truck Winners: Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge
Half-Ton Truck Losers: Toyota, Nissan, GMC
In the heavy-duty segment, where only Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and GMC compete, the Ford F-250 three-quarter-ton and F-350 one-ton trucks continued to rule the pack with almost 50 percent market share and 65,868 units sold. The Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500, in second place, picked up 2.2 points of share, the only heavy-duty truck to do so. The Ram HD sold 35,916 units. Combined sales (41,004 units) of the Chevy Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD weren’t enough to catch Ford’s HD pickups. The Chevy lost .8 points and the GMC was off .9 points of share.
Heavy-Duty Truck Winners: Ford, Dodge
Heavy-Duty Truck Losers: Chevrolet, GMC
Comments
I have been told Ford includes 450's and 550's in their totals, GM considers their 4500 and 5500 models medium duty trucks and does not include them with heavy duty pickups. Does anyone know if this true?
@Bob: You're correct about Ford including Super Duty trucks above the F-350 in its F-Series sales figures. The numbers provided by JD Power don't include F-450 and up, so what you see here is as apples-to-apples as we can get for comparison.
It's interesting when you consider the Sierra and Silverado to be the same vehicle (which in fact they are), it has most market share in the top two categories, and comes 2nd in the Heavy Duty. If the GMC brand was dropped (or should I say WHEN?), would the Chevrolet sales figures increase by as many GMCs decreased?
But all of Ford's commercials would have you believe that their F-150 is the top selling vehicle in the world, when in fact, Chevrolet outsells them in the 1/2 ton market! That's a pretty big eye opener for all you Ford homers!!! That's what you call deceptive marketing practices! It's their Heavy Duty trucks which are pulling all the weight (no pun intended, I think) over there. VERY INTERESTING!!
All of Chevy's commercials would have you believe that their Silverado is the top selling vehicle in the world, when in fact, Ford outsells them in the full size pickup market! That's a pretty big eye opener for all you Chevy homies!!! That's what you call deceptive marketing practices! It's their Light Duty trucks which are making the sale. VERY INTERESTING!!
Do you see how silly that is Randy??
i would have never known that dodge sold more 2500 and 3500 trucks than chevrolet (not combined with gmc).
I think the reason why the F150 sells far worse than the F250/F350 models is because of the SuperDuty's solid front 4x4 axle.Tough truck guys still dont accept an IFS for 4x4s.Another reason why the Dodges are doing so well.Straight axle.The Chevy with IFS will appeal to die hard Chevy buyers no matter what.Like Harley Davidson owners,they are stuck in a buying rut and cant get out.
Alex,
There was a post probably a month or so ago that someone had pointed out that for those GMC Sierra owners, their second choice among fullsize trucks was the F150. So if GM was to drop the GMC brand, those people that drive the Sierra would go for the Ford and not the Chevy. I've always been a Chevy guy, but I am getting sold on the new '09 F150 and just how much room the crew cab has compared to the cramped rear area of the Chevy crew cab.
Speaking of IFS, I have been hearing the Super Duty will get IFS in 2011. That true?
I like it - way to break out the HD and LD numbers. If only the Tundra was doing better...
If Ford switches to an IFS on their HD trucks (which is highly unlikely) they would just be shooting themselves in the foot...
WTF did i say, the new RAM is better than the F-150, and it's having a proven bigger impact on the market. Event the older style HD Rams are increasing market share. Just imagine the market share increase when the new HD's come out. All this while in bankruptcy. Eat Dodge's nuts Ford!!!
ford has the most heavy-duty sales because when it comes to heavy-duty trucks Ford by far sells the most to fleet, are highway and city road crews are littered with stripped down F-250's.
Also nice to see that the older Silverado is out-selling the brand new F-150, i wasn't really excepting that but it shows how great of a truck it really is.
I'm not the smartest man alive but it looks like Dodge has benefited fromToyota's poor showing the most. Makes sense, people bought Toyota's for horsepower and are going back to the Ram for horsepower. Ford has increased sales in the F-150 (by 1.1%) while losing sales ( only .5%) in the super duty class. So the new Government Motors fans shouldn't be so much like our president and declare victory just yet. GM will falter just like his stimulus plan. Any one who buys GM or Chrysler after the bankruptcy are just idiots..... So many small stock holders and small investment groups were screwed by GM,Chrysler and the Socialist democrats that it is a crime....
The Silverado and the Ram are both excellent trucks - the Chevy being my personal favorite in terms of styling - but there is a key point here that hasn't been mentioned. You gotta remember that both GM and Chysler have open spigots and unlimited access to Gov't TARP money to finance their retail deals while Ford Credit still finances the old-fashioned way; they buy financing on the open market and pay high interest rates for it. A buddy of mine recently bought a Silverado for about 5K less than a comparable F-150 even though he was much more impressed with the F-150. In short, Ford is getting screwed by the goverment's ownership of GM and Chysler, and I hope Ford Credit gets classified as an industrial bank to put a stop to this nonsense. If that happens the Silerado's reign will be short-lived. As for me, I am planning on turning in my 07 Silverado and buying a new F/150 FX4 .... as a matter of principle. Go Ford!!
There are way too many False Positives in this report. I suspect fire sales related the dealership closings have really spiked up Dodges numbers, especially their HD which have been on the market for a few years. We will see in the next two months if GM truck numbers shoot up as well, but GM is giving their dealers longer to liquidate.
Down the road Ford will have a distinct advantage in many rural areas that GM and Chrysler just handed over to them by closing small market dealers. I was surprized, especially how many Chrysler dealers closed in rural areas instead of inner city/suburban areas.
New enginses for te F150 and a new Diesel for the Super-Duties will also help Ford capture more market. BK forced GM to put off upgrades their trucks which could have used some styling tweaks.
Good to see consumers waking up and recognizing the tundra for the turd it is. Its not rated for much more than flower pot hauling and the problems with Cams, Tailgates, Torque Converters, Radios, Vibrations and Flimsy bed under stressful conditions make it a lousy investment and terrible ride.
Seriously, this means nothing. GM being on the verge of bankruptcy (until filing, of course) has been throwing all kinds of incentives on all their vehicles. 0% for 72 months AND cash back. No wonder it's outselling the F-150 which doesn't have the incentives that the Silverado does. When the dust settles, the F-150 will come back on the top. As for Ford eating Dodge's nuts in the HD category, come back when Ford isn't outselling Dodge nearly 2-to-1. With the new Scorpion diesel and refresh coming, I don't see that happening any time soon.... There's also the new 6.0/6.2 (haven't heard confirmation on which) for the F-150. Horsepower won't be any issue there.
I bought a new F-150 in January and haven't regretted it. I could've had a comparable Ram of 'rado for thousands less. However, when I cho0se to support a company I do it by buying their products...not by paying my taxes. Perhaps this is why Ford's most recent numbers were only off 11% where GM was in the 30's and Chrysler was in the 40's in terms of sales decline.
Way to go Ford for doing it right.
First of all I never said Dodge Ram HD's are outselling Ford Super Duty's. I said there gaining market share. Second of all horsepower will still be an issue for you Ford guys because your horsepower hopes will be crushed by the Ram new 6.4L HEMI. However I do give props to Ford for doing it right and not taking gov money yet I have been a Dodge fan forever and will stick by there side til the end. I do respect Ford no doubt though.
Thanks for the reply. I appreciate your position. I really think what's really impressive is that even with the firehose of rebates and incentives on the Bowtie and Horn trucks that the F-150 is really holding its ground. I just hope that they don't get screwed by Uncle Sam in the next few years when they're still paying their debts like good corporate citizens while GM and Chrysler/Fiat are living basically debt-free because they couldn't hold their own. It will sure be interesting to see.
As for the HP comment, Ford has nearly ALWAYS lacked in that department and it's good to finally see them getting it right. I'm not saying they'll be at the top of the charts, just that they won't be at the bottom of the heap anymore. And did I read somewhere that the new Hemi got shelved because of $$$ and CAFE requirements? Not sure there, but I think I may have.
GM is already coming out of bankruptcy, after just 39 days. They will be a stronger and more competitive company without all the debt and ridiculous contracts they had with the unions. Now that Hummer, Pontiac, Saab, and Saturn are out of the picture, we will really start to see some great vehicles and better quality.
As for the diesel market, GM's Duramax is scheduled to be bumped up in HP and Torque and will probably remain a stronger motor than what Ford and Dodge has. Look at the last "Shootout" between these vehicles, GM's motors led the way in most of the categories! And if you keep listening to these idiots who say "don't buy GM because of the bankruptcy", then you're an idiot too! The new F-150's look like a box and they look like the Expeditions, how un-original!!! It's no wonder that an older Chevy bodystyle is beating the newer F-150 in sales!! Besides that, the F-150 is sluggish and has no power! It feels like you're driving an overweight box of $hi*. Keep dreaming Ford homers!!!
The biggest reason that the Chevy 1500s are out-selling the F-150 is because Government Motors has closed down dealers and throwing huge rebates at customers. Which is all fine well and good--except for the fact that the the Silverado's interior looks like it came from the 1980s (still), and even though GM has Government backing, the F-150 is still the baddest out there. Why? 3 reasons: Best Payload--Best Towing capacity--Safest. When the dust has settled, and in spite of Government Motor's best laid plans, the F-150 will still be the #1 truck on the market.
Another thing--Ford has a 6.2L V8 coming, but I ask all of you Dodge & Chevy nuts--how is it that Ford has a smaller engine, less horsepower, and yet still can haul more in both payload and towing? Proper management of the HP that they produce, and better utilization of Torque.
May the F-150 and the rest of the F-series' rule continue uninterrupted!
Interesting data, would like to see a little more drill-down.
Realistically, the only reason Dodge does so well in the heavy duty lines is the Cummins diesel engine option. Without that engine Dodge would barely register a blip on the sales scope.
Numbers don't mean much to me but I'm glad to see the Ford "Best Selling Pickup" farce uncovered. The F250, 350, etc are entirely different trucks than the F150. How can they lump them all in together and call them the "best selling pickup"?
Yikes GM HD trucks are getting there lunch ate by Ford , when the hell is GM going to put a solid front axle under the GM HD trucks .
What is funny here is the amount of people who keep focusing on the HD numbers and then talking about Ford doing so well. The HD market is 1/5th the LD market - GM is winning this war in overall numbers. Ford only gets away with saying "best selling brand" because you have to add Chevy and GMC together. Ford has marketing brags, GM has the volume brag. I think I would rather sell more vehicles overall like GM does that have a marketing brag.
So you would rather be Government Motors, bankrupt and only selling anything because of the bailouts and losing money on each truck? Yeah, they are really winning this "war". LOL.
lets see Ford's HD numbers with out all of their cheap no-money making fleet sales, i bet the numbers don't seem nearly as impressive.
Always been a Chevy guy, but I could not find anything to dislike about the '09 Ram and just about everything to like. Dodge is serious this time. i keep comparing the build quality with my '07 Silverado and the 7 Rams I've looked at have it beat in almost every category. Based on the Ram owners I've talked to, they are experiencing something I never have: not one has had to take their Rams back to the dealer for anything. In two years my '07 Silverado's been back five times. Dodge, you have my attention!
I am always blown away by the brand loyalty BS that dominates these sites.Grow up. All of you. Do some real research and then buy what you need. Talking to a few brand loyal people won't give you a realistic view of which truck is the best. Sales statistics will not tell you which is the best. I put quality and reliability at the top of the list for which truck is the best. I do have my own preferences when it comes to styling, but thats not all I care about. It's childish to let ego or brand loyalty cloud our purchase decisions. I don't like the fact that governments are taking money out of my pocket to save mismanaged companies. I wasn't planning on buying a Ford but if I buy a truck I don't think I'll buy one I've paid twice for (1st with my taxes and then with the cash I have left!)
I guess I always bought chevies because everyone in my family did. I know that if i had bought something else I would've been considered a trader. My family thinks of Chevies like some practice religion. Some people need to own a "number one" because they need the feeling of morally superiority that comes with being part of a more popular group. I don't need that and Iam not a follower, however. I've already decided that I've had enough of Chevy and I'm willing to try something else. My last two trucks have been a dissappointment from a performance and reliability standpoint. Our 3 Cavaliers and two Luminas have been more trouble and costly to repair. And over the years I've noticed that we haven't done any better with repairs than anybody else, and probably worse than most. I've driven the F150 and the Ram and I'm really liking the Dodge. Once I get the transmission fixed on my Silverado I'm seriously considering a trade. My brothers sure won't like it!
Hi All, I see the brand loyality here and I guess I am somewhat loyal too. Nothing wrong with that.
My bottom line is this, when I look at trucks I want the features I am intrested in. I do enjoy doing the research and looking at the spec's. I do wish at times I could get deeper details on different aspects of my comparisons, but that seems hard to do.
I have never seen a truck that had everything I want, but if I could just combine several trucks into one, it could happen for me, but I doubt the tuck companies will ever let that happen.
As an example I like GM's interior best, Dodge bed tool boxes, Fords bed steps, Toyota brakes and finned aluminium diff. covers and I could go on about all that.
I have often thought that the other guy(s) have often missed the boat on after market upgrades and accessory upgrades that could generate a lot of extra profit for the majors.
Bags, tilt beds, hidden retractable running boards, electrical outlets, programers and such are great, but do not allow for a built in look when it comes to switches,wiring, and guage pods and the rest. In short, I do not like a cluttered cabin and a add-on look. The big three or four could help those issues and make extra money in the process.
That often forces a compromise and I would really like it "My Way". If GM, Ford or Dodge ever gets closer to that type of offers, they will dominate the market.
The Idea that any of the companies has the best engine, brakes, trannies, diffs. or even interiors, is just smoke and mirror, in my book. The quality of the different parts or systems is a matter of vendors and profit margins, it fluxcuates to much for the consumer to follow other than not buying the first year or two of a production run.
Just my two cents.
Ford fans... type "cash for clunkers" into the google window, or just read a consumers report. You get what you pay for.
Congrats to the ford Super Duty my favortie truck , you are the best heavy duty truck the best there was in heavy duty n the best the ever will be in the heavy duty keep up the great work Super Duty n make me proud
I have 4 brothers who worked for ford motor company and are ford fans.They are always promoting ford products which is understandable,but they cannot get there statistics right.They keep pushing the long term quality of the product,when stats show that ford is in the the top percintial of repairs. lets see ford or ram trucks give 160000 k powertrain warranty,it would break there banks.Also ford trucks are not the number one truck sold when compared to both sierra and Silverado.I am and always will be a GM driver and proud owner. Ihave owned aprox. 8 new GM trucks and have never had a powertrain problem.One of the brothers just bought a GM pickup.
The comments to this entry are closed.