Americans Don't Want Small Cars

I'm starting to get annoyed at all of the articles and television news stories criticizing the auto industry about not meeting the demands of consumers. If you listen to them, Americans want small, affordable, gas-sipping micro-machines, not gas-guzzling SUV's and minivans.

I'm all in favor of the law of supply and demand. Simple macroeconomics. Free market economy. If car companies build the cars that Americans want, they deserve the rewards. If car companies build crap that no one wants, let them fail for making bad decisions. If Americans want smaller cars or hybrids, fine, build these cars.

However, the media is insisting that they know what we want. And the only car companies building these small affordable gas-pissing, I mean gas sipping, vehicles are foreign auto makers. But if you look at the facts, you may find something different. Looking at April 2009 sales, here were the top selling vehicles in the country, courtesy of this website.

1) Honda Accord - 29,212

2) Ford F-Series - 28,757

3) Chevy Silverado - 26,437

4) Honda Civic - 26,252

5) Toyota Camry - 25,324

6) Toyota Corolla - 18,534

7) Ford Fusion - 18,321

8) Dodge Ram - 17,903

9) Chevy Impala - 17,532

10) Chevy Malibu - 14,665

Let's see, that's 3 full-sized pickup trucks, 5 mid/large sized cars, and 2 economy cars. 6 domestic automakers, and 4 foreign companies. If Americans wants fuel efficient cars so bad, then why are they not buying them? Is it perhaps that they don't really want small cars? Or are greedy corporations and Republicans twisting consumers' arms into buying these vehicles?

According to http://www.motorintelligence.com/, in May 2009 Americans bought 437,779 light trucks and 488,045 cars. For the domestic auto makers the statistics are very contrasting. Ford sold 94,000 light trucks and 67,197 cars. GM sold 109,872 light trucks and 81,009 cars. Bringing up the rear, Chrysler sold 60,972 light trucks and 18,038 cars.

We all hear that trucks and SUV's are the bread and butter of these companies and according to these sales figures, they are building exactly what they should be building. Why should they refocus on low-profit small cars when current small car sales do not support such a shift?

My argument is that since car sales have fallen year over year, this year one cannot accurately gauge what Americans want to buy. If no one is buying Chryslers, is it because no one wants the vehicles they offer, or is it because no one is buying cars in general?

This pressure comes, not only from the media, but also from the Obama administration. We've heard things like, "There has to a fundamental shift in the way they do business," Why? So they can make less money? Unfortunately for Chrysler and GM, they took bailout money and they are now at the mercy of the socialist Obama administration. Ford, on the other hand, appears to be well-positioned for the economic recovery and will continue to make cars that Americans will buy.

I think that Chrysler needs to be more worried about their partnership with Fiat when they start importing Mitsishitsies and other similar micro-death-traps. Sales could plummet even further. My prediction is that the big SUV sales will never recover to their early 2000 levels(Expedition, Tahoe, Sequioa), and perhaps nor will the sales levels of even the mid-sized SUV's (Explorer, Pathfinder, 4Runner), but Americans will still want a bigger car (Malibu, Camry, Accord) and perhaps smaller SUV's (Excape, CRV, RAV4).

The media's attempt to pressure the auto industry to alter their sales strategy most likely will not work. In the end, free-market economics will win. Americans will buy what they want to buy, not what the media tells us we want. The old saying, "What's good for GM is good for America" no longer applies. America will determine what's good for America. And if one of the auto companies is not on the same page, they can start writing their epitath now.