More new vehicles were sold across the United States than in any year since 2019 with the industry bouncing back after the COVID-19 pandemic and the supply shortages that it helped trigger. Leading the sales race was General Motors.
Analysts expect overall U.S. sales to have hit around 15.5 million in 2023, which would be represent an increase of around 13% over 2022, but a final number won’t be known until all brands publish their sales figures in the coming days.
GM sold a total of 2,577,662 light vehicles in the U.S. throughout the 2023 calendar year. This represents a 14.1% increase over 2022 and is the company’s best result since 2019 when it sold 2.9 million vehicles. Chevrolet remained GM’s best-selling brand, shifting 1,699,244 vehicles, a 13.1% increase over 2022 while GMC accounted for 563,677 sales, an 8.9% jump. Interestingly, it was Buick that experienced the most significant jump in sales with 167,030 units arriving in the homes of shoppers, a 61.4% rise from 2022. Sales of GM’s all-electric vehicles totaled 75,883 units, or 2.9% of its total volume.
Read: Ford F-Series Remains Best-Selling Truck And Overall Vehicle In America
“We led the industry in trucks and had great success with our affordable SUVs like the Chevrolet Trax and Buick Envista, some of today’s hottest-selling vehicles,” GM president of North America Marissa West told the Detroit Free Press. “In 2024, we expect industry sales to remain strong and we’re excited about the opportunities ahead as we expand customer choice with new vehicles like the Chevrolet Equinox EV and Cadillac Escalade IQ.”
The Toyota Group, comprising the Toyota and Lexus brands, stands as the second-best selling automaker in the United States, with 2,248,477 deliveries in 2023, marking a 6.6% increase compared to 2022. Ford’s 2023 sales reached 1,995,912 vehicles, reflecting a 7.1% increase over 2022 and representing its strongest performance since 2020.
The Hyundai Group, consisting of Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis, had a highly successful year in the U.S. with sales increasing by 12.1% to reach 1,652,821 units. This achievement secured its position as the fourth-best selling automaker in the U.S. in 2023, behind GM, Toyota Motor, and Ford Motor Co. It also moved ahead of Stellantis, which includes the Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep, Fiat, and Alfa Romeo brands, and reported a 1.3% decline in sales to 1,533,670 units.
Meanwhile sales of Honda and Acura models proved particularly strong last year, jumping collectively by 33% to 1,308,166 units. Other carmakers to report noteworthy gains include BMW with sales of 397,521 units (+9.3%), Mazda with 363,354 sales (+23.2%), Nissan/Mitsubishi with 986,136 (+21%) and Subaru with 632,086 (+13.6%). The VW Group, comprising the Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and VW brands delivered 565,416 cars, representing an increase of 14.2% over 2022.
