People sometimes talk about giving 110 percent, but we all know that's impossible. Giving 100 percent even seems unlikely most of the time. But sometimes smaller percentages can mean a whole lot more than these hyperbolic figures.
That's why Chrysler Group LLC is proud to announce that its 27-percent increase in overall sales during the month of September not only beat out those of all other U.S. automakers - they also surpassed analyst estimates for monthly sales. Dodge Ram Evanston drivers may be in part to thank because deliveries of Ram pickups fueled a notable portion of the 127,334 cars and light trucks that made up the company's boost in figures.
Chrysler deliveries surpassed the estimate of a 20-percent increase - an average of seven separate analyses. Last month, the automaker also enjoyed a 45-percent increase in sales of the Dodge Ram. Evanston pickup drivers are loyal to the Dodge brand, which also saw an increase in deliveries of the Durango SUV, which rose to 4,923 from 47 in 2010.
Last month Chrysler outperformed competitors like General Motors, Toyota, and Ford. Chicagoland residents can keep their eyes open for a slew of new Northfieldcars: Town & Country models as well as Tourings will have new drivers and a new spot at the top of monthly sales.
Analysts from the Institute for Highway Safety Automotive have attributed part of the increase in sales to gas price fluctuations, both in and beyond Northfield. Cars, Town & Country vehicles and Grand Caravans take a backseat to pickups when gasoline prices drop as they did in September. According to a report from AAA, gas prices fell almost 20 cents (5.4 percent) last month, reaching as lows as $3.43 per gallon.
But a drop in fuel prices doesn't mean that light vehicle deliveries cooled off; in fact, that figure rose to 13.1 million in September, Autodata Corp reports. September's high sales demonstrate that it's taken six months to bounce back from the tsunami in Japan that deterred the delivery of parts and completed vehicles to the United States.
With car sales gaining percentages, it looks like the auto industry is going to see some pretty significant changes in all the numbers that matter most.