U.S. Sales Slide for Japanese Big Three in April

New-vehicle deliveries fell a combined 0.8% daily for the top three Japanese automakers in the U.S. in April (one less sales day this year than last), as both Toyota and Honda report declines.

The biggest culprit in the performance was Honda, which saw sales slide 3.4%. Toyota was relatively flat, posting a 0.7% drop, while Nissan landed in the black with a 2.3% gain from year-ago levels.

Sluggish demand for cars drove the overall results, as Toyota car sales slumped 8.1% from year-ago, according to WardsAuto data, and Nissan volume dropped 7.5% daily. Honda car sales fell 7.4%.

Light-truck demand rose at all three automakers, with Toyota’s daily deliveries up 6.0% and Nissan’s gaining 13.9%, WardsAuto data shows. Honda posted a slim 0.8% increase in the sector.

Toyota volume totaled 201,926, as the Toyota brand carried the day with a 4.0% rise from year-ago. Lexus sales fell 7.7%. CUVs, up 12.1%, and SUVs, rising 1.7%, were the only segments to post increases for Toyota overall.

Among individual models, the CT (up 42.9%) and NX (up 17.6%) were the only gainers for the Lexus brand, while the Toyota brand saw strong results from the 4Runner (+6.8%), Highlander (+24.2%), RAV4 (+9.4%) and Yaris (+15.8%). Among models suffering severe double-digit drops were the Avalon, Prius/Prius C and Land Cruiser.

Nissan’s overall gain came on volume of 121,998 vehicles, with trucks accounting for more than half of the total at 62,345 units. The decline in car demand to 59,653 came entirely from the Middle sector, which slid 24.2%.

Both brands posted increases, but it was Infiniti that grew the most, with sales up 7.5% on 10,797 units. Nissan deliveries rose 1.8% to 111,201.

Hot models for Infiniti included the new Q60 car (+721.9%) and QX70 (+44.4%) and QX80 (+33.3%) utilities. The new QX30, an addition to the CUV lineup, chipped in 1,208 units toward the brand’s volume.

Big gainers at Nissan included the Armada (+143.8%), Maxima (+26.4%), Rogue (+22.7%) and Titan fullsize pickup (+314.7%). The Murano (-8.3%) and Juke (-45.8%) were among models posting declines.

Honda’s falloff to 138,386 units was reflective of the performance of both its Honda and Acura brands, which slid 2.7% and 9.4%, respectively.

The TLX was Acura’s lone bright spot, with sales soaring 44.5%, while all other models posted double-digit declines. For the Honda brand, the CR-V (+17.3%) and HR-V (+27.1%) CUVs led the way, along with the Ridgeline pickup. The Accord (-11.3%) and Civic (-8.3%) were among core models suffering drops.

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