General Motors Co. have delivered 746,659 vehicles in the United States in the second quarter of 2019.

Sales of the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crew cab and GMC Sierra 1500 crew cab were both up 12% year-over-year. The Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, and GMC Yukon XL were each up more than 20% compared to a year ago.

But, overall, GM deliveries during the second quarter were down 1.5% versus a year ago, in line with third-party estimates for industry sales. According to the automaker, estimates have retail market share was even with a year ago, with truck and crossover deliveries offsetting lower passenger car sales.  

The U.S. light-vehicle SAAR for the first half of the year is expected to be a healthy 17.0 million units, according to GM Chief Economist Elaine Buckberg. “Auto demand was better than anticipated in the first half and we expect strong performance in the second half of the year. If the Fed cuts rates, as widely expected, lower financing costs will provide further support to auto sales,” she said.

Additionally, starting this quarter, GM will begin breaking out deliveries of its full-size light- and heavy-duty pickups. “The light-duty segment is the highest-volume part of the pickup market and we are expanding choice to make sure that we meet the needs of every customer,” said Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president, Sales Operations. “Heavy-duty trucks, by contrast, are about 25% of full-size pickup sales. Our HDs are purpose-built machines for people who need maximum capability, and we are poised for significant growth.”

Light-Duty Launch Update (Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500):

• GM has installed new body shops, upgraded paint shops and reconfigured general assembly at its plants to increase capacity by 20,000 units compared with the outgoing model.

• Based on the most recent data available, retail customers have registered more GM full-size light-duty pickups in 2019 than either Ford or Ram. GM light-duty registrations have also led Ford F-150 in 11 of the last 12 months.

• The first new GM models to launch were the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra crew cabs in late summer 2018. Sales of each were up more than 12% in the second quarter versus a year ago.

• After two consecutive quarters of double-digit year-over-year growth, GM’s crew cab mix has risen from 60% of sales to almost 75%.

• Full production of all cab styles started in March for both retail and fleet orders, and inventory is approaching target levels, especially for the most affordable regular and double cab models. Sales of these models were down year over year due to limited availability.

• More than 95% of all-new GMC Sierra 1500 crew cab sales are high-end trims including SLT, AT4 and Denali.

• GM is introducing a new refined, very powerful and extremely fuel-efficient 3.0-liter Duramax diesel that is expected to be available later this quarter.

Heavy-Duty Launch Update (Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD/3500HD, GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD):

• GM has consolidated heavy-duty pickup production at its Flint (Michigan) Assembly plant. The company has installed new body and paint shops and created 1,000 new jobs to support a capacity increase of 40,000 units compared to the outgoing model.

• The company is sharply increasing production of crew cab and diesel models to meet customer demand.

• Early production will be focused primarily on crew cab models, similar to the light-duty launch cadence. Trucks began shipping to dealers in the second half of June, with availability expected to grow throughout the third and fourth quarters.