The Cruze Is Hitting On All Cylinders At Jeff Gordon Chevrolet As March Cruze Sales Exceed 18,000

April 4, 2011 - PRLog -- Fueled by over 18,000 vehicles shipped to dealers last month, the Lordstown, Ohio -built upscale compact vehicle surged to the top of the GM car chart in the first quarter of the year at 50,205, the automaker said Friday.

The total paled next to the 92,445 sales posted by Chevy's Silverado 1500 pickup truck, but it returned the Lordstown Ohio Complex to its glory days of producing GM's top-selling car after years of trailing the fullsize Chevrolet Impala and midsize Chevrolet Malibu.

The Impala was a close second in sales for the quarter at 49,541, while the Malibu was third at 48,745, but the Cruze is expected to be Chevy's top seller by year's end, Don Johnson, GM's vice president of U.S. sales, said on a conference call.

Perhaps more importantly for GM and Lordstown, the Cruze is doing things that its predecessor Cobalt and Cavalier couldn't do - attract buyers who don't normally drive GM, and get them to pay more.

About half of Cruze sales in March were "conquest" sales - luring buyers from competing models, such as perennial segment leaders Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic, GM said.

"The Cruze is helping us keep customers and bring in new ones," Johnson said.

The Cruze also sold better than the Cobalt in California and other states where GM normally finds it hard to win small-car buyers, Chevrolet Vice President of Sales and Service Alan Batey said.

In addition, Cruze sales came at an average transaction price close to $19,000, which was $2,000 above the Civic and $3,000 above the Corolla, Batey said.

"That tells you customers are putting more options in the vehicle," Johnson said.

Johnson credited the Cruze for helping GM double its share to 11.4 percent from 5.7 percent of the compact car market, which he called the fastest-growing segment.

"With oil hovering around $105 (a barrel,) we see a bit of a shift to compact cars," he said, adding the higher oil price isn't causing customers to delay purchases. "We think the economy will stay on its current course of slow, steady recovery."

The Lordstown Ohio Complex, which launched the Cruze Sept. 8 as GM's brightest hope   hit a new production high for the car of 26,353 units. It built 22,618 in February and 22,314 in January.

Jeff Gordon Chevrolet recently placed an order for 100 Chevrolet Cruze and special arrangements have been made for customers to color & option available Chevrolet Cruze currently in production.

Don't miss the opportunity to color and option your very own 2011 Chevy Cruze.

Your vehicle will come straight from the Lordstown, Ohio factory to the showroom of our 15 acre Award Winning Chevrolet Dealership in Wilmington North Carolina.

Go to http://www.jeffgordonchevy.com/ and color and option a 2011 Chevy Cruze to your exact specifications.

Jeff Gordon Chevrolet is a proud member of the Hendrick Automotive Group. GM Dealer of the Year and GM Certified Used Vehicle Sales Leader for 9 consecutive years, you can rest assured we'll be there for you long after the sale.

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Four time NASCAR Winston Cup Champion, Jeff Gordon, displays the same winning formula he uses on the race track in his dealership.Jeff Gordon Chevrolet in Wilmington, NC is a Hendrick Automotive Group dealership and a member of Hendrickcars.com
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