November Auto Sales Show Slide From October, Still Some Bright Lights

November Canadian auto sales are in, and as COVID-19 closures crept back in across the country, auto sales began to fall as well. Though a far cry from April, this time the market was estimated to be down by 10.4 per cent over November 2019. Still, some automakers continued to set sales records and other automakers posted strong results.

The total estimate for November was 128,351 vehicles sold, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, down 10.4 per cent from November 2019. But, also important to remember is that November 2020 had three fewer selling days than 2019, and that’s before looking at any possible closures. So here’s a look at what automakers are reporting.

Subaru set its best November ever for November, following up an October that was the company’s second-best month ever. A 7.5 per cent year over year increase to 5,552 showed in the strong growth of Crosstrek sales as the new 2.5-litre flat-four begins to arrive at dealers. The WRX STI, though long in years by now, posted 435 sales for an increase of 130 percent. The BRZ performed strongly as well. Subaru is now down 10 per cent for the year, but up 9.9 per cent for the quarter.

Volvo posted 1,004 sales, up 13 per cent from last year. That’s just one shy of its performance in October, which is traditionally a stronger selling month, and marks six consecutive months of retail sales growth for the brand.

Mazda’s total sales were up five per cent, though ignore car sales and the brand was up 17.8 percent with the CX-30 now firmly the brand’s third-best seller hitting 825 for the month. That nearly matches the CX-3 last year, which is still selling more than 300 units monthly. CX-9 sales climbed 22.4 per cent and the CX-5 saw a sales increase. Year to date Mazda’s total is down 14.6 per cent, but crossover sales are the equal of last year.

Toyota reported 15,878 units sold, down 16.8 per cent, though Highlander set a new November record as did the Lexus UX. 21.7 of Toyota and Lexus vehicles sold were electrified, a new record for the automaker.

Kia saw sales up 8.1 per cent, hitting 6,220 for November with the new Seltos taking the top sales sport for the brand at an impressive 1,781.

Hyundai saw sales climb as well, with Kona, Tucson, and Palisade all setting records for the month. The new Sonata saw sales climb 171 per cent compared with the same month a year before, showing that the large sedan market is still alive, if not entirely well. Not all was well, though, as sales of the Elantra fell by 61 per cent to 1,428 and the Santa Fe dropped 32 per cent. The Elantra is in the middle of a new model changeover, and that could explain some of the slowdown.

Next month comes the full-year results where every automaker will reveal their 2020 sales and we’ll have a full look at the year in auto sales along with what automakers are anticipating for 2021.

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