USA August 2022: First market uptick in over a year (+4.8%), Ford (+27.5%), Kia (+22.4%) strong

Ford Explorer sales are up 124.7% year-on-year in August.

New light vehicle sales in the U.S. grow 4.8% year-on-year in August to 1,149,440 units, marking the first gain since July 2021. The Seasonally Adjusted Annualised Rate of sales (SAAR) is up to 13.2 million vs. 13.09 million a year ago. The year-to-date volume now stands at 9,082,440 units, off -15% over the same period a year ago.

Looking at groups with available monthly sales data, Ford Motor (+27.3%) and Hyundai-Kia (+17.7%) clearly stand out with stellar year-on-year upticks. Subaru (+1.5%) is also in positive albeit at a lesser rate than the market whereas Toyota Motor (-9.8%) struggles and American Honda (-37.7%) implodes. As far as brands are concerned, Ford (+27.5%) shoots above Toyota (-8.1%) with a fantastic gain while Kia (+22.4%) and Hyundai (+14.5%) also impress. Honda (-36.3%) is in purgatory, with Mazda (-6.7%), Lexus (-20.1%) and Volvo (-23.9%) all missing out on the market growth. Acura (-47.3%) sinks whereas Lincoln (+24%) beats the market.

Model-wise, the Ford F-Series (+1.7%) edges up while the Toyota RAV4 (+9.1%) does better. The Toyota Camry (-5.7%) slides, the Toyota Tacoma (+11.1%) rises and the Ford Explorer (+124.7%) shows off. Other improvers include the Subaru Crosstrek (+30.5%), Hyundai Tucson (+28.3%), Elantra (+30.1%), Ford Escape (+24.1%), Kia Sportage (+58.7%), Forte (+27.9%), Ford Transit (+25.3%), Bronco (+267.5%), Toyota Tundra (+64.9%) and Kia Sorento (+114%).

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Previous month: USA July 2022: Ford (+35.8%), Lincoln (+64.5%) spectacularly defy market down  11.7%

One year ago: USA August 2021: Market sinks -17%, Acura, Mazda, Volvo, Lexus up

Full August 2022 sales for selected groups, brands and models below.