Toyota tops for
Hawaii car sales

2002 may prove to be a record year
for sales of new cars and trucks

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By Russ Lynch
rlynch@starbulletin.com

A new survey says Hawaii sales of new cars and personal trucks could hit a record this year.

The first brand-identifying survey in years that is endorsed by the local dealers' association also tells us Toyota is the top seller.

Local dealers say manufacturers are doing a great service in providing zero-interest financing and it doesn't hurt their business that homeowners are experiencing rising values and attractive refinancing rates.

Dealers that were available for interviews yesterday disagreed with one of the survey's points, that sales are likely to drop below last year's levels in the final quarter of this year.

Even with that forecast, however, this year looks to surpass 2000 as the best year for total sales of new cars and light trucks, including sports utility vehicles.

The survey says registrations of new cars and light trucks in Hawaii will exceed 50,000 units this year, about 2,300, or 4.9 percent, more than last year.

Compared to last year, retail sales of new personal vehicles were up 11.7 percent in the first quarter of 2002 and up 6.6 percent in the second quarter, says the "Hawaii Auto Outlook" survey by Auto Outlook Inc. of Malvern, Pa.

The four-page newsletter issued by the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association returns to ground the dealers didn't want to cover for some years, brand-to-brand comparisons.

In today's competitive auto market, with a lot of brands held by a few dealers, there isn't much disagreement about which are the winners.

Foreign brands dominate sales volume in Hawaii, as they have for decades, with Toyota tops in the latest quarter -- led by its Camry sedan and is Tacoma pickup -- capturing 23 percent of the market.

Next came Ford at 11.9 percent and two importers, Honda and Nissan, each at 10.1 percent. Chevrolet was next with 5.7 percent, followed by Dodge at 5.4 percent.

Nick Cutter, president of Cutter Management, which represents a bunch of brands, said business is good no matter how the brands shake out and "it's been a very good year for both new and used cars and trucks.

"We have all the makes with the exception of Toyota and Honda and the auto sector and the housing sector have been very fortunate" with today's interest environment.

"As long as the manufacturers continue their zero percent financing and rebates, for us Hawaii will come out better" than last year, Cutter said.

Servco Pacific Inc., the Hawaii Toyota dealer, is pleased Toyota tops all brands, said Paul Lan, Servco advertising manager.

"One of the problems is, we don't have enough units. We are a little short on inventory. We have great new models, such as the Highlander SUV, that are selling very well," Lan said.

Unlike the dealers in strictly American makes, Servco isn't offering special financing but that doesn't seem to make a difference in demand, he said.

"People are looking for a better quality of life," he said.

Joe Nicolai, head of JN Chevrolet Mazda Maserati Lamborghini, said zero interest really is the key and his company could sell a lot more Chevrolets than it has available.

Last week JN Chevrolet had only one vehicle for sale in a popular truck range and the demand was much greater, he said. As for a dip in sales late in the year, Nicolai doesn't see that happening.

As long as zero-interest loans are in place, cars will sell, but "I don't think zero interest is going to last very long. That's what's driving the market, the manufacturers' subsidies," Nicolai said.

The Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association decided to publish the survey, done by the Polk Co., because the Polk contract gives it far more information than was available before, said David H. Rolf, executive director of the association.

The only major point dealers have disagreed with so far, Rolf said, is the prediction of a late-year downturn.

The survey showed sales of new cars and trucks, year-over-year, up 11.7 percent in the first quarter of 2002, up 6.6 percent in the second quarter, up 6.1 percent in the third quarter and down 4.7 percent in the fourth quarter.

Overall new-vehicle registrations in the first half of this year were up 9.1 percent compared to the same point in 2001, the survey said.