Auto industry going through shifting of poles, Detroit 3 on the rise

There is definitely a shifting of the poles going on in the matter of leading auto-manufacturers. All 3 Detroit companies are on the rise, while Toyota is rapidly losing market share, and GM is flush. BMW and Mercedes have overtaken Lexus to do battle for the top luxury spot in the US, and the Koreans are outselling the Europeans in America.

“The renaissance of the Detroit 3 is well on the way,” AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson told Automotive News last week. “The profit results, product lineup and consumers’ opinion will allow the domestics to have market share growth for the second year in a row. We will see a remarkable recovery in market share as the domestics drive toward 50 percent.”

Japanese and American companies are all scaling back on incentives as well.

A major catalyst in the Americans growth comes by way of a push n the production of small cars, all the while the Japanese have fallen flat and bland in their offerings.

“We’re finally seeing the Honda Civic buyer,” said Michael McGuire, dealer principal at McGuire Chevrolet-Cadillac in Newton, N.J. He said that in addition to older, traditional GM buyers looking to downsize, the Cruze appeals to younger people who generally have stuck to Japanese brands.

– By: Stephen Calogera

Source: Automotive News