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SUV sales plummet for GM, Ford in April

Matt Aquano looks at a Pontiac G6 at a car dealership in Danvers, Mass., on Thursday. Aquano is planning to trade in his Chevy Trailblazer and purchase a 4-cylinder car that gets better gas mileage. In the background are other sport utility vehicles that were traded in at the dealership. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Dee-Ann Durbin Associated Press
Matt Aquano looks at a Pontiac G6 at a car dealership in Danvers, Mass., on Thursday. Aquano is planning to trade in his Chevy Trailblazer and purchase a 4-cylinder car that gets better gas mileage. In the background are other sport utility vehicles that were traded in at the dealership. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

DETROIT – General Motors and Ford saw double-digit U.S. sales declines but Toyota’s sales edged up 3 percent in April as high gas prices accelerated consumers’ rush away from trucks and sport utility vehicles.

A downward pattern was expected throughout the industry as gas prices rose to record highs. Automakers reported sales Thursday.

General Motors Corp. said its truck and SUV sales were down 27 percent, dragging down increases in car and crossover sales. GM’s overall sales were down 16 percent for the month compared with last April.

“Consumer preference is shifting, and we’re shifting with it,” said Mark LaNeve, GM’s vice president of North American sales. Sales of GM’s midsize Chevrolet Malibu shot up 40 percent, but the long popular Chevrolet Trailblazer SUV saw sales dip 73 percent.

Ford Motor Co. said its SUV sales were down 36 percent in April compared with the same month last year. Car sales were down only 1 percent, buoyed by sales of the Ford Focus small car, which saw a 44 percent jump in sales. The Focus gets 24 mpg in the city and 33 on the highway. By comparison, Ford’s largest SUV, the Expedition, gets 12 mpg in the city and 18 on the highway, according to federal statistics. Ford’s overall sales were down 12 percent.

Toyota Motor Corp. said its car sales rose 12 percent, largely on the strength of the subcompact Yaris, which saw sales rise 46 percent and the hybrid Prius, which was up 54 percent. Toyota’s truck and SUV sales dropped 8 percent.

“Smaller vehicles are going over big,” said Jim Lentz, president of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.

Pickup sales have been falling for months because of the slowdown in housing construction, and the trend away from SUVs began several years ago as Baby Boomers aged and roomy but more fuel efficient crossover vehicles gave consumers more choice. But automakers said gas prices are accelerating the trend.

“At $3 a gallon, there’s a lot of discussion about the price of gasoline but not much change in behavior. But in the mid-$3.50 range with $4 on the horizon, there’s a lot of change in behavior,” said Mike Jackson, the chief executive of AutoNation Inc., the country’s largest auto retailer.