GM 2011 sales down 1.7 per cent from 2010

GM Canada reported sales of 242,830 vehicles through its Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac dealers across Canada. That’s down 1.7 per cent from 2010.

The 2011 sales figure includes 275 Chevrolet Volt electric vehicles sold since its launch in September.

"Our 2011 results reflect the highly competitive automotive market in Canada,” said Kevin Williams, president and managing director of GM of Canada.

Marc Comeau, GM Canada’s vice-president of sales, service and marketing, said the company plans to launch a number of new vehicles in 2012, including the Chevrolet Spark, Buick Verano and the Canadian-built Cadillac XTS.

GM saw record sales in full-size pick up trucks in 2011, with 90,870 units sold, and sales of the Cadillac SRX were up 10 per cent for the calendar year.

Overall, however, total GM’s December sales of 18,282 were down 9.4 per cent compared to last December. That follows another bad month. November sales were down 10.9 per cent. Overall, sales for 2011 were down 1.7 per cent, year over year.

Headquartered in Oshawa, Ont., General Motors of Canada Limited employs more than 10,000 people across the country. Its automotive dealer network employs more than 23,000 people.