Ford overtakes GM in the US

FORD Motor Company outsold arch-rival General Motors for only the second time since 1998 in the monthly sales battle as American motor vehicle buyers drove up US sales volumes by 17 per cent last month over March last year.

The sales ascendancy of Ford came as company documents filed with US authorities revealed that CEO Alan Mulally had been rewarded with a 48 per cent hike in pay, stock and bonuses for 2010, to $US26.5 million – on top of the $56.5 million in stock he got last month as reward for the company’s turnaround.

By comparison, the highest paid executive at GM, CEO Dan Akerson, this year will get about $9 million in pay and stock bonuses under pay rates locked at 2010 levels by the US government under the terms of its 2009 bankruptcy bail out.

Last month, Ford sales rose 16 per cent to 212,294 units on the back of strong demand for its smaller passenger cars, including the newly-released Fiesta, as well as its refreshed Explorer SUV and perennial favourite, the F-150 pick-up.

It was the first time since February last year that Ford had had the better of General Motors in monthly sales, although GM still out-pointed Ford over the first quarter of 2011 to remain America’s biggest motor company.

Ford has not outsold GM on an annual basis for eight decades, and this year still trails GM by 97,000 units.

March, GM sales rose 10 per cent to 206,621 vehicles as it eased off the sales incentive pedal.

From top: Ford CEO Alan Mulally, Ford F-150, Chevrolet Cruze hatch, Nissan Altima.

In Year to date, GM sales are up 25 per cent, to 592,546 vehicles for the first quarter, well ahead of Ford’s 495,508 units (up 12 per cent).

The Chevrolet Cruze small car again was a standout performer for GM, with its 18,018 March sales just failing to pip the Chevrolet Impala as GM’s top-selling passenger car.

Third-placed Toyota was one of the few brands to slip backwards last month, down six per cent to 176,222 vehicles, presumably as it still feels the affects of unintended acceleration recalls. Year to date, however, Toyota sales are up 13 per cent.

The biggest rise achieved by any of the Detroit big three last month was a 31 per cent jump by Chrysler, whose Dodge and Jeep division kicked major sales goals, along with its own new Chrysler 200 mid-sizer that recently replaced the Sebring.

Chrysler’s March sales tally of 121,730 lifted its year-to-date performance out of the doldrums, helping it to finish the first quarter with 286,950 sales – up 23 per cent on the same period last year.

Among other big movers last month were South Korean brand Kia (up 45 per cent), its parent Hyundai (up 37 per cent), Mitsubishi (up 39 per cent) and Mazda (up 33 per cent).

Honda and Nissan both continued to outpace the market. Honda sold 133,650 vehicles in March, up 24 per cent, while Nissan sales reached 121,141 units, up 27 per cent.

Nissan’s big result was driven by sales of its Altima medium sedan that, with 32,289 sales in March, achieved the mantle of America’s best-selling sedan for the first time.

Nissan also scored its highest-ever monthly market share – 9.7 per cent – which helped to lift its YTD share to 9.3 per cent.

Year to date, Nissan is in a battle with Chrysler – 285,358 to 286,950 – for fifth place on the US sales rankings, behind GM, Ford, Toyota and Honda.

Overall, the US market achieved 1.24 million sales in March, compared with 1.06 million for the corresponding month last year.

After three months of 2011, the US motor industry has delivered more than three million vehicles, compared with 2.54 million last year, putting it on track for a 13.1 million-unit year.

The big question mark over US sales is the affect of plant closures caused by parts shortages in the wake of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.

Nissan has announced that it will close its US plants for six days this month due to shortages, Honda has foreshadowed production cuts at its US and Canadian plants, while GM has shut production at its Shreveport, Louisiana, pick-up factory. Ford reportedly will also temporarily close its Louisville, Kentucky, plant.

Meanwhile, massive pay rises for Ford’s top two executives, CEO Alan Mulally and executive chairman Bill Ford, have sparked talk of a union battle to recover some of the workers’ lost ground on wages since the start of the global financial crisis in 2007.

While Ford paid its workers an average of $5000 in profit sharing after the company reported a $6.6 billion profit last month, Mr Mulally – a former Boeing executive – received $56.5 million in stock rewards, while Mr Ford got $42.4 million.

Now, Ford documents filed with US authorities show Mr Mulally’s remuneration in 2010 was $26.5 million, with most of that coming in stock bonuses on top of his $1.4 million pay.

Mr Ford, who did not claim a salary from 2005 to 2009 as the company struggled out of its financial bind, received $26.46 million in pay, stock options and other rewards, some of which was back-pay for recent years.

At GM, executive salaries are controlled by the US administration’s ‘pay czar’ to keep a lid on excesses as the company recovers from chapter 11 bankruptcy.

While Chrysler salaries are similarly restrained, CEO Sergio Marchionne is paid by parent company Fiat and therefore not subject to a wage cap.