GM reports Q1 sales gain with record EV sales, but not of new models

Jamie L. LaReau, Detroit Free Press
·4 min read
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A GMC Sierra 1500 pickup on the assembly line at the General Motors Fort Wayne Assembly plant on Tuesday, May 14, 2019 in Roanoke, Indiana. GM announced Thursday, May 30, 2019 it is investing $24 million in the plant to expand production of full size Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups in Roanoke, Indiana.
A GMC Sierra 1500 pickup on the assembly line at the General Motors Fort Wayne Assembly plant on Tuesday, May 14, 2019 in Roanoke, Indiana. GM announced Thursday, May 30, 2019 it is investing $24 million in the plant to expand production of full size Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups in Roanoke, Indiana.

General Motors reported a sales gain Monday for the first quarter of 2023 as inventory levels rebounded, and it also reported the biggest number of electric vehicle deliveries during a quarter to date, although most were for the long-existing Chevrolet Bolt and Bolt EUV.

GM's first-quarter U.S. sales, when compared with the year-ago period, were up 17.6% to 603,208 new vehicles sold, the automaker reported. The gains came from continued strong demand for full-size and midsize pickups, including a big gain in commercial fleet sales. Sales of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups to commercial customers rose 38% in the quarter.

GM leaders say the year is off to a great start

GM ended the quarter with dealers having 412,285 new vehicles in stock, about the same number as in the fourth quarter. The improved inventory overall provides momentum going into the second quarter.

“GM is off to a great start in 2023," Steve Carlisle, president of North America, said in a statement. "We gained significant market share in the first quarter, pricing was strong, inventories are in very good shape, and we sold more than 20,000 EVs in a quarter for the first time. We’re leading in the fleet and commercialmarket, and all our brands have a lot of momentum heading into a busy season of new product launches."

Big EV deliveries but not of the new EVs

CEO Mary Barra has said this will be a breakout year for GM in the EV market with several new launches, including the 2024 Silverado EV (due out in late spring) and Sierra EV pickups, the Hummer SUV, the Chevy Blazer and Equinox all-electric midsize SUVs coming later in the year.

For the quarter, GM sold 20,670 EVs, 19,700 of which were the Bolt and Bolt EUV. But GM delivered two Hummer pickups and 968 of the Cadillac Lyriq SUVs − both of which use the automaker's new Ultium propulsion system.

GMC will be the only brand to offer three all-electric trucks, with the Sierra EV joining the popular GMC HUMMER EV Pickup and SUV2. Underpinning these three trucks is GM’s groundbreaking Ultium Platform, which enables incredible versatility and optimal performance in an all-electric truck.
GMC will be the only brand to offer three all-electric trucks, with the Sierra EV joining the popular GMC HUMMER EV Pickup and SUV2. Underpinning these three trucks is GM’s groundbreaking Ultium Platform, which enables incredible versatility and optimal performance in an all-electric truck.

The overall results are "surprisingly strong for almost all of the auto companies" as a result of improved inventory and higher fleet sales, said Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Cox Automotive. But a delivery of two Hummers raises a flag for her.

GM spokeswoman Colleen Oberc said there was a recall of about 800 Hummers late last year for a battery connector problem. GM halted production to fix it. Production resumed Jan. 31, but sales to customers were still on pause. At the end of the quarter, shipments resumed, including the new SUV model launching now.

GM said it is on track to build 50,000 EVs in North America through June and double that in the second half.

A driver in sales gains and big profits

The gains came on replenishing inventory of pickups and some SUVs, which are GM's big sellers and profit-makers. GM delivered 67,198 total Sierra light-duty and heavy-duty pickups for the quarter, up 18.7% from the year-ago quarter. Sales of the Silverado rose 5% to 126,992.

First quarter highlights of GM's top sellers

Small and midsize SUVs did well. A surprising winner in the quarter was the Buick Envision compact SUV, which rose 242% to 14,077. Also, GM delivered 12,279 of the Encore GX compared with 5,382 a year earlier. Both helped Buick end the quarter with a sales gain of 99% to 38,138 compared with a year earlier.

"Buick had a big percentage increase because it had a dreadful 2022," Cox said.

At Cadillac, XT4 SUV sales soared 83% to 6,773 and XT5 sales rose 46% to 7,285. Its biggest moneymaker, the Escalade full-size SUV, saw sales dip 12.2% to 9,228.

At Chevrolet, in addition to its sales of pickups, the Trailblazer subcompact SUV reported 27,951 deliveries, up from 8,606. The GMC Acadia midsize SUV saw a 70.8% sales gain to15,945.

Low points in first quarter

GM relies on its big SUVs for profits, but sales of all were down in the quarter compared with a year earlier, except for the Chevrolet Suburban, which rose 12% to 13,932 units, and the Tahoe, which had a 13.7% increase to 27,257. Chevy's staple mid-size SUV, the Equinox, saw sales decline 5.6% to 52,902.

This story has been updated to reflect that GM delivered 12,279 of Buick Encore GX SUVs.

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Contact Jamie L. LaReau at jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: GM reports Q1 sales gain with record EV sales, but not of new models