Sales of domestic new cars in the Chicago area rose 3 percent in April, to 41,655 units from 40,506 in April, 1986.
Not only was the Chicago area dealers` tally the strongest showing for any month this year, it ran counter to nationwide sales, which declined 4 percent in April.
The strength in Chicago area sales has local officials a bit stumped.
”It`s strange,” said Ross Kelsey, executive vice president of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, which represents more than 750 Chicago area new car dealers.
”I suspect the Chicago Auto Show (end of February) had something to do with it because historically the interest in new cars after the show lasts for several months,” he said.
”Dealers here were offering some incentives during the month, but dealers all over the country were offering the same incentives yet sales here are running counter to nationwide.
”It`s hard to figure any one reason, but whatever it is, we`re all very happy about it,” Kelsey said.
In April, General Motors Corp. sales here rose 1 percent, to 23,741 from 23,492 a year earlier, representing the second consecutive month this year its sales have topped year-earlier levels.
Ford Motor Co. made a strong showing, selling 14,239 cars, a 12 percent increase over the 12,691 sold in April, 1986. Sales of the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable rose 132 percent from a year earlier.
Chrysler Corp. dealers sold 3,490 new cars, down 9 percent from 3,856, while American Motors Corp. dealers sold only 185 cars, down 60 percent from 467 a year earlier.
For the first four months of the calendar year, area domestic dealers have sold 139,888 new cars, up 5 percent from 133,060 in the year-earlier period.
Ford and Chrysler dealers are responsible for the increase. Ford sold 44,105 cars in the four months, a 17 percent increase from 37,645, while Chrysler dealers sold 17,803 new cars, up 38 percent from 12,904 a year earlier.
GM sales slipped 5 percent in the same time period, to 77,491 from 81,277, while AMC sales toppled 60 percent, to 489 units from 1,234.
In the first four months, GM`s market share slipped to 55 percent from 61 percent a year earlier. Ford`s share has risen to 31 percent from 28 percent, while Chrysler`s share is up to 13 percent from 10 percent a year earlier.
