Weak March Cools Q1 New Car Sales
Factories sharing new vehicle sales reports with the Automotive News Data Center suffered a roughly 5% drop in total volume in the first quarter, driven in large part by a double-digit decline in March.
Stellantis (4.1%), Kia (4.1%) and Hyundai (1.2%) are the only major manufacturers to enjoy a year-over-year increase in Q1. Several report double-digit decreases, including Mitsubishi (-15%), Subaru (-15%) and Mazda (-14.4%).
Every manufacturer reports March sales declined compared with the same month a year ago, led by Mazda (-25.7%), Subaru (-23.5%) and Ford (-13.8%).
“U.S. light-vehicle sales were expected to decline sharply in March from a year earlier, when demand surged as consumers scrambled to lock in prices before President Donald Trump began imposing new U.S. tariffs in April 2025,” writes AN’s David Phillips. “The drop in March volume will cap a weaker first quarter undermined by severe winter weather and lower EV deliveries.”
Phillips’s report also includes encouraging data from JD Power and GlobalData, where analysts say incentive spending and EV discounts both improved in March.
