Ford Motor Co. overtook rival General Motors for the lead in US sales Tuesday as Toyota faltered amid a series of mass recalls and congressional investigations into its safety standards.
Ford appeared to have capitalized on Toyota’s woes as its February US sales jumped 43 percent to 142,285 vehicles, overtaking GM, which sold 141,951.
It was the first time Ford had surpassed GM in monthly sales since the top US automaker’s sales were hit by a strike at a key supplier in 1998.
Competition was set to be fierce in March as automakers sought to match the zero percent financing incentives Toyota offered wary customers.
Toyota reported an 8.7 percent drop in February US sales to 100,027 vehicles while its market share slipped 3.1 points to 12.8 percent, according to the research firm Autodata.
“I’m surprised that we sold as many vehicles as we did,” said Bob Carter, vice president of the group’s Toyota division.
“We did see a drop in our first-time Toyota buyers,” Carter said in a conference call. “But we haven’t seen any major outflows of Toyota buyers to other brands.”
Overall industry sales rose 13 percent to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 10.38 million units from depressed year-ago levels, according to Autodata.
A series of massive snowstorms was blamed for dampening February’s sales which were down from the 10.78 million unit rate posted in January.
News of the drop in Toyota sales came as the Japanese auto giant’s top executives faced a third grilling by US lawmakers as the number of US deaths blamed on defects in its vehicles rose to more than 50.
Critics have attacked Toyota for its sluggish response to complaints and accused it of covering up defects and incorrectly blaming accidents on floor mats or sticky pedals while ignoring possible electronic problems.
Toyota — which has recalled more than eight million vehicles worldwide — has said it will overhaul its quality-control measures and insists it has found a solution to the problems.
Ford’s market share including its Volvo unit rose 3.8 points sales to 18.2 percent while GM’s share was down 0.1 points at 18.1 percent, according to Autodata.
“The strength of our new products and Ford’s leadership in quality, fuel efficiency, safety, smart design and value are resonating with customers,” said Ken Czubay, Ford vice president for US marketing, sales and service.
“The good news is we have even more new products and fuel-efficient powertrains coming this year, and we expect our progress to continue.”
GM, which posted an 11.5 percent gain from February 2009, expressed satisfaction with its performance.
“We got what we thought was our fair share of Toyota sales,” said Mike DiGiovanni, GM’s executive director for global market and industry analysis.
But while GM welcomed the opportunity to introduce its products to new customers, the automaker attributed the bulk of its gains to the success of its restructuring plan and a solid lineup at its four “core” brands.
Sales at Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac rose 32.2 percent in February to 138,849 while total sales including brands being wound down rose to 141,951 vehicles in February from 127,296 a year earlier.
“Although we’ve been operating as a new company with four brands for just seven months, our February results demonstrate that our long-term plan is already paying dividends,” said Susan Docherty, GM vice president for sales, service and marketing.
“For the fifth month in a row, Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac reported a year-over-year increase in retail sales with a combined retail sales up seven percent” in February, she said in a conference call.
Chrysler’s US sales rose by one vehicle to 84,449 units from the depressed levels of a year earlier but were nonetheless 48 percent higher than the dismal results it posted in January.
Its market share slipped 1.4 points to 10.8 percent, according to Autodata.
Honda’s share slipped 0.1 points to 10.3 percent even as its sales rose 12.7 percent to 80,671.
Nissan’s share rose 1.1 points to 9.0 percent as its sales jumped 29.4 percent to 70,189.
Hyundai’s share was unchanged at 4.4 percent even as sales climbed 11 percent to 34,004 vehicles, according to Autodata.
