zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Buying
/
Here's How Much Interest Dropped For GM's Sedans And Small Cars
Here's How Much Interest Dropped For GM's Sedans And Small Cars-April 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:46

Even with all the exciting new car debuts at the 2018 LA Auto Show, the big news this week is that General Motors is slashing its car lineup, closing plants and laying off some 14,000 workers. The automaker cited a need to invest in EVs and autonomy, and a decline in interest in small cars and sedans across the board. But just how bad was it?

This study from Jumpstart Automotive Media, a marketing research company that analyzes buyer interest and shopping patterns from more than 20 million shoppers, released this data after GM’s cuts were announced.

Jumpstart looked at various GM sedan and small car models and calculated how buyer interest in those cars changed year over year, and how the segment as a whole did. So even if interest in a particular was up, the segment itself may have been down as SUVs and trucks start to dominate the market:

A few takeaways from this:

Even though interest in “alternative fuel cars” (a wide-ranging term that probably mostly means hybrids and EVs here) is up considerably in 2018, interest in the Chevrolet Volt was down, and the segment leader is the Tesla Model 3—no surprise given the hype there.

It’s possible that the Bolt EV, which boasts nearly 240 miles of range and is extremely livable, has weakened demand for the Volt hybrid—or served as a next step from happy Volt owners. Interest in the Buick LaCrosse was way down, as was the segment it was in.

Even if interest in new models like the Cadillac CT6 was way up (and the XTS was slightly up too, perhaps for all the black car liverydrivers out there) it was offset by a weakened demand in that segment as a whole.

No matter how good the newest Chevrolet Cruze is, the Honda Civic is a titan that can’t be defeated.

These findings are backed up by Jumpstart as well:

No doubt, a large number of American shoppers continue to turn their attention toward trucks, crossovers and SUVs of all sizes, and General Motors feels it’s in their best interest to shift their strategy in this direction as well,” said Colin Thomas, senior analyst, strategic insights & analytics. “While this strategy is in focus for GM, there is still a large population looking at cars, which means brands such as Honda, Toyota, Hyundai, and Audi could look to take an even larger share of the car and sedan market.

We saw Fiat Chrysler and Ford do the same thing over the past year: pare back sedans and smaller cars to focus on more profitable crossovers, SUVs and trucks. GM’s strategy seems to be to make as much money off those as it can for now, while investing in the technology behind whatever’s next.

As notes, demand for smaller cars isn’t dead entirely, it just largely is among the American brands:

But it’s not like nobody’s buying sedans. The Toyota Camry and Corolla sold a combined 700,000 cars in 2017. Ditto the Honda Civic and Accord. And the Nissan Altima and Sentra came in at around 475,000 last year. If you look at the historical sales figures of the top Japanese sedans, you’ll see a small decline in recent years, but nothing like the big drop-off in sales that have hammered the American companies.

So in addition to the overall decline in sedan sales, there is a second, largely overlooked, dynamic taking place: Americans have only stopped buying American sedans, not Japanese sedans. This is so even though cars like the Ford Fusion are as good as any Japanese sedan. But why?

Why? We discussed this in our story this week about how . None of those dead GM cars were segment leaders, but many of them were excellent—the Volt, Cruze and CT6 especially. GM’s cars are better than they have ever been. But as we noted, it still hasn’t been enough to get rid of the bad taste in people’s mouths that formed over decades of poor quality compared to Asian rivals.

Yesterday, General Motors shocked the business world with news that despite strong profits as of…

I still maintain that the SUV is king right now, and the ultimate proof of that is Hyundai, which has also suffered in sales for having a sedan-heavy lineup. The huge new Palisade SUV is supposed to fix that.

So yes, GM’s cuts happened for a lot of reasons, including weakened demand in those segments and being unable to overcome bad reputations among buyers. The question is, how many of those cars will really be missed?

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Buying
1989 BMW 325i Takes Vitamin E36, Costs $16,995!
1989 BMW 325i Takes Vitamin E36, Costs $16,995!
Like the precedent 2002, the E30 BMW is well loved for its simple shape and honest performance. However, about today's 325i it can simply be said that its E36 transplant makes it honestly better. Furrowed brows and lips pursed to a side ruled the day yesterday as everyone came to...
Apr 21, 2026
1989 Reatta Puts You Under its Spell-check for $3,500!
1989 Reatta Puts You Under its Spell-check for $3,500!
If the concept of a Buick sports car makes you put on your Moe face and go whaaaa? you're not alone. With fewer than 22,000 total sold, today's Reatta wasn't fooling anybody. Also not fooling anybody was yesterday's . Just as certain flashing lights can send an epileptic into a...
Apr 21, 2026
I-Da-Ho V8 Datsun for $3,000!
I-Da-Ho V8 Datsun for $3,000!
Idaho's state bird is the Mountain Bluebird. Datsun's 240Z is a derivation of the Bluebird sedan. Today, has a Ford-powered Z from the potato state that might just flip your blues the bird. When it was first introduced, the Datsun 240Z was praised for being the poor man's E-Type. And...
Apr 21, 2026
LM7 RX7 Pops an ALL CAPS in Your Ass for $7,500!
LM7 RX7 Pops an ALL CAPS in Your Ass for $7,500!
Some have accused the second generation RX7 of being the softest of the breed. Of course, a monster V8, like today's candidate has, can make it much harder. And, it might make you hard too. To the tune of the Beverly Hillbillies Theme: Come and listen to a story about...
Apr 21, 2026
Custom 1982 Charger Wants You to Drop Your Top for $5,200!
Custom 1982 Charger Wants You to Drop Your Top for $5,200!
In the 1980s Omni magazine attempted to make science fiction sexy. Today, has a Dodge Omni-based Charger from the ‘80s that proves going topless is still the best way to be sexy. It wasn't futuristic sexy but midwestern hospitality that ruled the day on Monday as a 1972 240Z played...
Apr 21, 2026
C5 Corvette Says It's Hammer Time for $29,999!
C5 Corvette Says It's Hammer Time for $29,999!
The Chevy V8 has been the go-to engine for transplanters, and we've seen quite a few Frankencars with them here on . Today however, we've got a candidate that was actually born with one. Corvette. America's Sports Car. No other car, over the years, has exemplified the American ideal quite...
Apr 21, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved