Bookmarking
Auto on Info pages
Supporting
Auto on InfoHome or
Site Layout or
Site Map or
Site Index or
Quick Jumps or
Search Engine
Directory or
The Mart or
The LinksAuto
News, Analysis and EditorialToyota
and Honda Dominate June 2004's Hottest Selling Top Ten
|
Auto on Info July 2004 Toyota and Honda Dominate June 2004's Hottest Selling Top Ten The Wall Street Journal reports that Toyota Motor Corporation manufactures three of the ten hottest selling automobiles in the U.S. in June 2004. These three include one in the Scion line - the Scion xB and two in the Toyota line - the Prius and the Sienna.1 The Scion xB is designed to meet the needs and tastes of today's young adults, although baby boomers have taken to it as well. The Prius, Toyota's environmentally friendly hybrid that is powered by both battery and gas, was the fastest mover in June,1 as it was in May2, April3, March4, and February5. Its popularity is global and its quality is high; it is one of Consumer Reports' 2004 Top Picks6 and 2004 Quick Picks7, with a CR predicted reliability in the highest category.6,7,8 The Journal reports that the average number of days that the Prius was on U.S. dealership lots in June was 6; the second hottest model had an average lot stay nearly double that of the Prius. However, Toyota sales people state that the wait for a Prius in many parts of the U.S. is six months to one year; consequently, even the national average of a six-day lot period fails to measure how much demand for this vehicle outstrips supply. Toyota's minivan, the Sienna, was, as well, on the Hottest Ten list for February, March, April, and May.2,3,4,5 The Sienna is another of Consumer Reports' 2004 Top Picks, with a predicted reliability in the highest category.6 Honda Motor Company manufactures four of the ten hottest selling automobiles in the U.S. in June 2004. These include three in the Acura line - the MDX, the TSX, and the TL - and one in the Honda line - the Pilot. Consumer Reports places the predicted reliability of the MDX in the second highest category.9 The TSX is one of the successors to the Integra and is based on the smaller Accord sold in Europe and Japan. The TL is based on the larger Accord sold in the U.S. The 1995-1999 Reliability Percentrank average for the U.S. sold Integra is .91 and that for the U.S. sold Accord is .90.10 The Pilot is a CR 2004 Top Pick with a predicted reliability in the highest category.6 For the past quarter century, Toyota and Honda have dominated vehicle reliability, as well as other measures of quality. Nissan Motor Company manufactures one of the ten hottest selling automobiles in the U.S. in June - the Infiniti QX56. The QX56 is too new to have a CR predicted reliability; however, Infiniti's 1995-1999 Reliability Percentrank line average is .92, second only to Toyota's Lexus' .94. The remaining two on the list of the Hottest Ten are the Chrysler 300 and the Mini Cooper. No CR predicted reliability is available for the Chrysler 300; however, the 1995-1999 Reliability Percentrank average for the Chrysler line is .29, among the lowest for all lines sold in North America for which data are available.10 The Mini Cooper's predicted reliability is in the lowest category.11 Consequently, it seems likely that both models will have a short spotlight life, with a faddish - and possibly thoughtless - rotation in followed by a rather speedy rotation out. 1"Hot Off the Lot," Wall Street Journal, July 14, 2004, p. D2 2"Hot Off the Lot," Wall Street Journal, June 9, 2004, p. D9 3"Hot Off the Lot," Wall Street Journal, May 12, 2004, p. D3 4"Hot Off the Lot," Wall Street Journal, April 7, 2004, p. D2 5"Hot Off the Lot," Wall Street Journal, March 10, 2004, p. D12 6"Top Picks 2004," Consumer Reports, April 2004, pp. 8,9 7"CR Quick Recommendations," Consumer Reports, May 2004, p. 53 8"Vehicle Profiles: A User's Guide," Consumer Reports, April 2004, p. 73 9"Vehicle Profiles: A User's Guide," Consumer Reports, April 2004, p. 33 11"Vehicle Profiles: A User's Guide," Consumer Reports, April 2004, p. 62 |
|
