SANTA MONICA, CA — May 28, 2020 — The car shopping experts at Edmunds say that generous financing offers and incentives during Memorial Day weekend helped give the auto industry a much-needed boost in May, forecasting that 1,074,542 new cars and trucks will be sold in the U.S. for an estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 11.8 million. This reflects a 32.5% decrease in sales from May 2019, but a 50.5% increase from April 2020.
"We can safely say that April was the bottom for auto sales during the coronavirus pandemic," said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds' executive director of insights. "There's still a long road to recovery ahead, but May auto sales are a really encouraging sign for the industry. The unprecedented deals broadcast by automakers and dealers really did the trick in getting more consumers to reenter the market, social distancing and all."
Edmunds experts note that automakers have already begun to dial back some of the more generous financing incentives made available at the start of the crisis; consumer demand continues to grow and inventory could begin to dwindle as auto manufacturers work on getting their factories safely and consistently up and running.
"The best car shopping deals of the summer are happening right now and they're not going to last," said Caldwell. "If you're in the market for a new car, now is the time to pull the trigger. Once automakers start to pump the brakes on their incentive spending, many cash-strapped Americans will be left in the lurch."
| SALES VOLUME |
2020 May Forecast |
May 2019 | April 2020 | Change from May 2019 |
Change from April 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GM | 186,325 | 260,618 | 138,420 | -28.5% | 34.6% |
| Ford | 158,088 | 233,560 | 120,044 | -32.3% | 31.7% |
| Toyota | 152,336 | 222,174 | 84,694 | -31.4% | 79.9% |
| FCA | 141,506 | 218,702 | 91,749 | -35.3% | 54.2% |
| Honda | 101,203 | 145,532 | 57,751 | -30.5% | 75.2% |
| Hyundai/Kia | 97,581 | 128,496 | 66,479 | -24.1% | 46.8% |
| Nissan | 71,065 | 131,983 | 46,287 | -46.2% | 53.5% |
| VW/Audi | 32,008 | 54,594 | 25,678 | -41.4% | 24.7% |
| Industry | 1,074,542 | 1,591,116 | 713,962 | -32.5% | 50.5% |
*NOTE: May 2020 had 26 selling days, May 2019 had 26 and April 2020 had 26.
Edmunds estimates that retail SAAR will come in at 10.2 million vehicles in May 2020, with fleet transactions accounting for 13.5% of total sales.
| Market Share |
2020 May Forecast |
May 2019 | April 2020 | Change from May 2019 |
Change from April 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GM | 17.3% | 16.4% | 19.4% | 5.9% | -10.6% |
| Ford | 14.7% | 14.7% | 16.8% | 0.2% | -12.5% |
| Toyota | 14.2% | 14.0% | 11.9% | 1.5% | 19.5% |
| FCA | 13.2% | 13.7% | 12.9% | -4.2% | 2.5% |
| Honda | 9.4% | 9.1% | 8.1% | 3.0% | 16.4% |
| Hyundai/Kia | 9.1% | 8.1% | 9.3% | 12.4% | -2.5% |
| Nissan | 6.6% | 8.3% | 6.5% | -20.3% | 2.0% |
| VW/Audi | 3.0% | 3.4% | 3.6% | -13.2% | -17.2% |
More insight into recent auto industry trends can be found in the Edmunds Industry Center at https://www.edmunds.com/industry-center/.
About Edmunds
Edmunds guides car shoppers online from research to purchase. With in-depth reviews of every new vehicle, shopping tips from an in-house team of experts, plus a wealth of consumer and automotive market insights, Edmunds helps millions of shoppers each month select, price and buy a car with confidence. Regarded as one of America's best workplaces by Fortune and Great Place to Work, Edmunds is based in Santa Monica, California, and has a satellite office in Detroit, Michigan. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
