New car sales weak in March, but automakers had feared worse

 Ford's F-Series line of full-size pickups outsold the next-most popular 
 vehicle in the country last month by over 25 percent, but the automaker
 still saw its overall sales fall by 41 percent compared to March 2008.

Automakers are reporting significant declines in last month's new car sales compared to March of 2008, though sales volume has fallen by less than in some other recent months to improve over January and February levels.

While sales declines of 45 percent from General Motors, 41 percent from Ford, 39 percent from Chrysler and Toyota, 36 percent from Honda, and 35 percent from Nissan are harsh, each of these major automakers saw a bigger loss from this February compared to February of 2008. 

March sales are typically stronger than the earlier winter months, but the lessening losses are a positive sign as automakers staunch their bleeding.

General Motors saw sales starting to recover on several of its key products whose sales had collapsed in January.

The Chevrolet Cobalt compact car and Pontiac G6 midsize are two high-volume products whose sales had evaporated by 70 and 82 percent respectively this January compared to last each saw March declines of under 50 percent. Call this damning with faint praise, but as even sales of such strong nameplates as the Toyota Prius hybrid and Highlander SUV were cut in half in last month compared to March 2008, it's not an achievement to ignore. 

GM did see its Silverado full-size pickup slip from the second best-selling vehicle in the country to the third, however, displaced by the Toyota Camry midsize car. Ford's competing F-Series continued as the country's top seller, and the Dodge Ram -- redesigned and greatly refined in the past year -- saw a sales increase that moved it closer to the Silverado than it has been in years.

Chrysler also saw strong sales performance from its minivans, its Dodge Journey crossover, and its Jeep Wrangler SUV, and posted its best month of sales in six months despite sharp losses from its compact cars and SUVs and midsize sedans. 

Ford, the only Detroit automaker that has not asked for emergency federal assistance and whose CEO recently boasted its product line was "competitive now," saw every last product in its core Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury brands post a double-digit sales decline last month. 

Three products in Ford's Volvo line posted sales increases -- the V70 wagon, C30 hatchback, and C70 convertible -- but the gains were by fewer than 100 units each.

However, though major automakers saw their sales declines shrink, the few remaining bright spots in new car sales have dimmed. Subaru, Kia, and Hyundai had been alone in posting sales increases earlier this year; all three did worse this March than March 2008. Kia and Subaru are still slightly ahead in combined 2009 sales from all three months, at least.

Automakers estimated that combined they sold about 800,000 cars in the United States last month, up from 688,909 in February.