DETROIT - General Motors dealers in the United States delivered 308,817 vehicles in August, making it GM's best monthly total, retail and fleet sales performance so far in 2008. The strong showing was spurred by GM's Employee Discount for Everyone sale in celebration of GM's Centennial later this month. In response to ongoing customer and dealer demand, the sale is being extended through September 30, 2008 and a number of 2009 models are being added due to dwindling 2008 inventories.

Compared with an exceptionally strong retail and fleet month last year, August total sales were down 20 percent. However, when compared with July, 2008, total sales were up 31 percent, retail sales were up 32 percent and fleet sales were up 29 percent. Last August's sales performance was influenced by significantly lower fuel prices and a 0 percent APR for 60 months offer on pickups.

Notably in August, Chevrolet Silverado, Avalanche and GMC Sierra had their strongest total sales month since last August, with more than 80,000 vehicles sold, as GM full-size pickups continue to build market share calendar-year-to-date. Silverado sales were up 69 percent, Avalanche was up 59 percent and Sierra sales increased 75 percent compared with July, 2008.

Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban and GMC Yukon full-size utilities had their best performance of the year with total sales up 33 percent compared with July with more than 22,000 vehicles sold. Overall, GM August truck sales (excluding crossovers) declined 25.6 percent compared with a year ago.

"Our award-winning lineup of new products, combined with the GM Employee Discount for Everyone sale that started August 20th, helped drive additional showroom traffic and our dealers are giving us some very enthusiastic feedback. We had our best sales month so far in 2008. Today we're announcing the extension of the sale through September 30, and we've added 19 additional 2009 models to the eligible list of vehicles because our 2008 stock on dealer lots is rapidly disappearing," said Mark LaNeve, vice president, GM North America Vehicle Sales, Service and Marketing.

"With the recent moderation in fuel prices, we're seeing some relaxation of pent-up demand in pickups and utilities. Our August sales of these segment-leading trucks and utilities has been the best in nearly a year and August marked the fourth consecutive month that truck sales as a percentage of GM and industry sales increased. We also saw double-digit retail increases in our crossovers compared with July," LaNeve added. "We saw great car retail performance in our launch products, including the Chevrolet Malibu, Cadillac CTS, Pontiac Vibe and G8, and Saturn Astra, and continued strong retail demand for our fuel efficient Chevrolet Aveo and HHR."

Chevrolet retail car sales were up 18 percent, Pontiac retail car sales increased 11 percent and Cadillac retail car sales were up 10 percent compared with last August.

Cadillac CTS dominated the mid-car luxury category with retail sales increasing 87 percent compared with the same month a year ago.

Saturn Astra monthly sales of more than 1,900 vehicles were the best to date, and show a 28 percent increase compared with July 2008 (Astra was not available last August).

GM's popular midsized crossovers — Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook — together accounted for more than 14,600 vehicle sales in the month, with a retail sales increase of 29 percent compared with a year ago.

GM hybrid vehicles continue to gain in popularity in the marketplace with 530 hybrid Chevrolet Tahoe, 267 GMC Yukon and 1 Cadillac Escalade 2-mode SUVs delivered. There were 388 Chevrolet Malibu, 26 Saturn Aura and 417 Vue hybrids sold in August. For the month, a total of 1,629 hybrid vehicles were delivered, with 7,096 hybrids sold so far this year.

"Customers are responding to our six hybrid models - vehicles that provide industry-leading value, great fuel economy and the best warranty coverage of any full-line automaker," LaNeve added. "We're working hard to change perceptions and gain awareness of GM as the leader in advanced propulsion technology and fuel efficiency."

GM has aggressively managed inventories to low levels. In August, only about 736,000 vehicles were in stock - the lowest August level since 1998 - down about 209,000 vehicles (22 percent) compared with last August. There were about 256,000 cars and 480,000 trucks (including crossovers) in inventory at the end of August.

Certified Used Vehicles

August 2008 sales for all certified GM brands, including GM Certified Used Vehicles, Cadillac Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, Saab Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, and HUMMER Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles, were 41,238 vehicles, down 8 percent from August 2007. Year-to-date sales are 339,375 vehicles, down 5 percent from the same period last year.

GM Certified Used Vehicles, the industry's top-selling certified brand, posted August sales of 35,168 vehicles, down 12 percent from a strong August 2007 sales performance. Saturn Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 1,005 vehicles, down nearly 6 percent. Cadillac Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 4,023 vehicles, up 27 percent. Saab Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 791 vehicles, up 32 percent, and HUMMER Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles sold 251 vehicles, up 130 percent.

"The Cadillac, Saab and HUMMER programs posted robust sales increases in August, while GM Certified Used Vehicles continues to lead the certified pre-owned segment in sales," said LaNeve. "The launch this month of a new 12-month/12,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty on all Saturn Certified Pre-Owned and GM Certified Used Vehicles, effective September 13, will provide shoppers a range of peace-of-mind assurances as strong as those provided by any certified program in America."

GM North America Reports August, 2008 Production; Third-Quarter Production Forecast at 920,000 Vehicles; Initial Fourth Quarter Forecast is 875,000 Vehicles

In August, GM North America produced 341,000 vehicles (158,000 cars and 183,000 trucks). This is down 96,000 vehicles or 22 percent compared with August 2007 when the region produced 437,000 vehicles (152,000 cars and 285,000 trucks). (Production totals include joint venture production of 18,000 vehicles in August 2008 and 21,000 vehicles in August 2007.)

The GM North America third-quarter production forecast is at 920,000 vehicles (443,000 cars and 477,000 trucks) which is down about 10 percent compared with a year ago, due to production adjustments in response to market changes that will reduce the number of trucks produced by about 176,000 and increase the number of cars by about 76,000. GM North America built 1.020 million vehicles (367,000 cars and 653,000 trucks) in the third-quarter of 2007.

The initial GM North America fourth-quarter production forecast is 875,000 vehicles (436,000 cars and 439,000 trucks) which is down about 16 percent compared with a year ago. GM North America built 1.042 million vehicles (358,000 cars and 684,000 trucks) in the fourth-quarter of 2007.

[GM]

American Honda
Honda was the sparkling bright light of hope amidst today's reports, announcing year-over-year sales figures which bucked the greater trend with a gain of 13.8%. The increases at Honda were led by a record breaking month for both the Honda Fit and the Honda Civic. Sales at the Acura division weren't so great, but when you're selling the brand for fuel efficient small cars during painful fuel times, that kind of thing gets overshadowed.

Daimler AG
There's some kind of saying about how the rich get richer and the poor get... something, but it escapes our mind at the moment. We're watching Daimler's caviar-infused Kobe veal just now arriving. We're not the least bit surprised in the Daimler announcement of sales improvements around 12.9%, the idea of driving anything less than a Mercedes in these trying times is simply unnerving.

Subaru Motors
Maybe all those years of pitching responsible transportation and safety-inspired handling have netted benefits, as Subaru has reported a 5.3% increase in sales for June. Could also be the the new Subaru Forester crossover scores major points with the "I want an SUV but I'd love good fuel economy" crowd. Whatever the case, the Fuji Heavy industries subsidiary is making gains in a tough market.

Volkswagen AG
VW must be doing something right, as they've managed to eke out a 0.3% sales increase where many others have not. Perhaps the concept of small, premium, sporty, fuel efficient cars isn't so far-fetched after all. Listen to us, we sound like smug Europeans.

BMW Group
It just goes to show that questionable styling, thirsty engines, and complex controls don't always a luxe brand make. BMW Group reported an unfortunate sales loss of 11% for June. Where the compact Mini brand saw a 24.8% bump in demand, the BMW brand dropped by 17% — we're betting those numbers pick up once the BMW X6 starts hitting — or rather bypassing showroom floors — as all of them are spoken for already.

Toyota
Not all is well within the super number one best awesome brand from the land of the rising sun. June saw an overall decline of 11.5%*. Breaking that down — the Lexus Division was smacked pretty good with a 21.1% decline and the Toyota Division fell 10.3% relative to last June. Supply problems with what should be the all-star Prius forced a 25% sales drop for the headlining hybrid. What about them trucks though? Toyota truck sales were down a whopping 31.1% which, in our opinion bodes very poorly for the new Toyota Tundra. Consider the Ford F-150's sales flagged by only 5% more, and yet the Toyota is much newer with a new F-Series just over a pushed-back-by-two-months horizon. *Toyota reported figures adjusted for daily sales rate

Nissan North America
Apparently Nissan is no slouch in losing sales either. Carlos Ghosn's golden brand saw a decline of 17.7% this June. Sure, it's not as good as either Toyota or Honda, but it sure as hell isn't as bad as the traditional big three. As expected, sales of the company's small cars came on strong last month, but Nissan's trucks and SUVs took a solid faceplant. Nissan still has that all-electric wonder-car planned, so we're sure the greenwashing campaign will begin immediately.

General Motors
The General isn't doing too bad compared to its cross-town rivals, but losing 18.5% compared to last years' June still stings. Sure, the Hummer brand lost an eye-watering 60%, but other vehicles made up for most of it, like the shockingly popular Chevy Malibu, and even the Cobalt is seeing renewed demand. And don't even talk to them about trucks and SUVs. But that's not to say GM is on solid ground, especially considering recent announcements from management on idling of plants.

Porsche AG
Perhaps it's the pending release of a freshened Porsche 911, or the overall stagnation of the brand, or that Porsche sales are heavily weighted on the high selling, and uber-thirsty Cayenne, but Porsche announced a surprising drop of 18.9% in sales. Maybe even luxury buyers are tightening their belts when it comes to weekend toys.

Ford Motor Company
Ford did not have a very good month. With declines pegged at 28% and sales of the popular F-150 down a staggering 36% for the month of June, the big blue oval is taking one to the jaw on the sales front. It's worth a note though that the yucky-looking but fuel-efficient new Ford Focus is positively flying off the lots. Now if only they could get that new Ford Fiesta here on the double.

Chrysler LLC
Chrylser LLC has posted a mind numbing 36% decline for June, and with numbers like that, and the decision to shutter the St. Louis minivan plant, Cerberus has got to be patting themselves on the back right about now. June was so bad, we heard the Chrysler dealers actually had to resort to brushing the spider webs off the doors during their lunch breaks. Despite its $2.99 gas deal, some of the SUV offerings were complete non-sellers, for instance: Jeep Commander — down 68% to 1,961 vehicles; Dodge Durango down 67% to 1,723 vehicles; Chrysler Aspen down 49% to 944 vehicles.

Mitsubishi Cars
And today's winner is Mitsubishi, posting a breathtaking 42.4% decline in sales compared to last June. Here is where we insert jokes about lingering Chrysler interior quality, and the smashing success of the new Mitsubishi design language, but that just seems mean. Let's be serious for a second though, has anyone seen the interior of the Mitsubishi Endeavor? Oh wait, that answer is no.