www.firstchoiceautofinder.com

www.firstchoiceautofinder.com

General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen, Nissan, and Mercedes-Benz all reported U.S. auto sales fell in December, leaving car sales at their lowest level since 1998.

GM's sales of new cars and light trucks dropped 4.1 percent from a year earlier, according to Auto data, while Ford's total tumbled 9.2 percent and Toyota's fell 1.7 percent as overall sales dropped four percent in December. For the year, light vehicle sales totaled 16.1 million units.

Chrysler, however, showed a modest increase of one percent as did BMW and Suzuki. Honda's sales, however, were essentially flat, while Porsche posted a modest increase.
Mazda reported a 25-percent increase and Hyundai posted a 24-percent sales increase for December, while Kia sales fell 19 percent, according to Auto data.

Toyota, which finished the year with an increase in sales, moved up to second in overall sales, pushing Ford from the second spot for the first time in 75 years. Honda, Nissan, KIA, and Hyundai also reported gains for the full year, putting more pressure on the market share of the Big Three, which have seen their share of the U.S. market, drop by more than 20 points over the past decade.

FirstChoiceAutoFinder.com says that when Scion is included in the totals for the Toyota brand, Toyota actually was the best-selling nameplate in the Canada, surpassing GM's sprawling Chevrolet brand by more than 30,000 units. Minus Scion, Chevrolet finished the year as the best-selling brand in America.

Mitsubishi enjoyed its best year since 2004, despite a 40-percent drop in sales in December, and Suzuki's sales topped 100,000 units for the second year in a row, while Subaru sales dropped nine percent in December and six percent for the year.

 
"This was definitely a challenging year to be in the car business, and 2008 isn't likely to be a piece of cake.
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Consumers appeared to cut down on car shopping as rising energy costs and a steep drop in the housing market took a toll on the nation's economic health. Housing starts, a barometer for sales of profitable trucks, are in the deepest slump in 15 years.

But the sales in Hybrid vehicles is a different story: 

Firstchoiceautofinder.com says that sales of hybrid vehicles jumped over 120 percent in the past year, and auto manufacturers have finally gotten off their horses and are taken notice. More and more models are being offered with hybrid power plants, and many more will be coming in the next few years.

Whether consumer demand will keep pace with the increasing supply isn't known. Much depends upon the price of a gallon of gas in the coming years and whether other, better technologies emerge and mature.

While the first few hybrids to reach FirstChoiceAutoFinder in the Canadian market, the Pries and Honda's Insight, were designed as hybrids from the ground up, the trend now is to add hybrid technology to existing models the Honda Accord, Toyota Highlander, and the Ford Escape, for example. In a few years, it may be just another engine option. The salesman may ask you "Would you like the four-cylinder, the six-cylinder, or the hybrid? OK,

We'd take this increasing availability as a sign that the technology is maturing, and owning a hybrid no longer puts you in with the pocket-protector-wearing, recumbent-bicycle set. Hybrids no longer call attention to them, and drive pretty much like any other vehicle.

Hybrids are proof that you can have your tofu cake and eat it, too. Once you've swallowed the purchase price premium, it's a relatively painless way to do your part to reduce your impact on the planet and save on gas costs, too.

Hybrid vehicles combine power from a gasoline engine and a battery-powered electric motor. The batteries that power the electric motor, or motors, are charged by the gasoline engine when it's running, and a little bit by energy captured while braking. So, unlike an electric car, you never, ever have to plug it in. Adding the power of an electric motor means you can use a smaller gasoline engine and still get decent performance. Most hybrids also incorporate an "engine shut-off" at idle. So the gasoline engine automatically stops running when you stop at a light, and then instantly restarts when you touch the gas pedal to move again. The results are a significant increase in fuel economy especially in stop and go driving and a substantial decrease in pollution. For more info check

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