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More than half of Mazdas sold in 2018 are CX-5s, and other interesting sales facts

Last year was a seriously good year for carmakers. Overall, more vehicles were sold than in 2017, and the total number wasn't far off of the all-time record in 2016. Digging deeper into the numbers, you'll find some pretty usual stuff including the Ford F-Series still being the bestselling pickup truck in America, and a continued trend toward crossovers. But there are also some oddball factoids tucked in these sales reports, some that defy the trends, and some that are extremes of the public's buying preferences. We've compiled several interesting tidbits from last year's sales right here for your enjoyment. More than half of Mazda's sales were of CX-5s Yes, over half of all Mazda sales were of this one model. The company sold 300,325 cars in America last year, and 150,622 of them were CX-5 crossovers, or 50.1 percent. Just for emphasis, that means the other 49.8 percent of Mazda's sales were split among five other models, the Miata, 3, 6, CX-3 and CX-9. Breaking that down further, the second-best seller was the Mazda3 at 64,638, which isn't even half of the CX-5's sales. People are crazy for Mazda's middle crossover. Volkswagen actually sold more cars than crossovers It's clear that the crossover is the future king of car sales. For most mainstream brands, it already is. Chevy, Ford, Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Mazda and Nissan all sold more crossovers and SUVs than they did conventional sedans and hatchbacks. There are holdouts, though, and one of them is Volkswagen. At the end of 2018, the company sold 189,343 cars and 164,721 crossovers in the U.S. So that's one win for the classic car set, and it's justification for VW to maintain its car line for the foreseeable future. It's a bit of a hollow victory, though. Look closer and you'll see that car sales were down 28 percent from 2017, when VW sold 262,029 cars. Crossovers, on the other hand, jumped 112 percent from 2017 when 77,647 crossovers moved through U.S. dealers. So expect the tables to turn very soon. Mustang is still the muscle-car sales king, but Challenger is the only one to improve Once again, the Ford Mustang topped the muscle-car sales charts, beating out the Dodge Challenger and Chevy Camaro. Ford moved 75,842 of the ponies in 2018, while Dodge sold 66,716 Challengers for second place, and Chevy sold 50,963 Camaros to bring up the rear.

New Ford Mustang incoming; driving the Tesla Model S Plaid | Autoblog Podcast #746

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. We're fast approaching the reveal of the 2024 Ford Mustang, and we talk about what we know so far. We also discuss what's next for the Chrysler 300, McLaren is mulling an electric crossover, we've got more Civic Type R details, and Mitsubishi's Ralliart sub-brand is making its return to America. We've been driving a Tesla Model S Plaid, Kia Sportage X-Pro and Kia EV6, and we give our final thoughts on our long-term loan of a Hyundai Palisade. Finally, we dip into the mailbag to help a listener choose a new sporty car in the "Spend My Money" segment. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #746 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Everything we know about the 2024 Ford Mustang 2023 Chrysler 300 updated. What's next? McLaren pulls U-turn, now mulling (possibly electric) luxury crossover 2023 Honda Civic Type R power figures and more revealed Ralliart returns to America for 2023 Cars we're driving Tesla Model S Plaid (and what the interior looks like after 19,000 miles) Kia Sportage X-Pro Kia EV6 Hyundai Palisade Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Green Podcasts Chrysler Ford Hyundai Kia McLaren Mitsubishi Tesla Coupe Crossover SUV Electric Future Vehicles Luxury Performance Sedan

Second-tier UAW workers promoted for first time after Ford hits quota

The United Auto Workers put out a statement on Friday that 55 Ford workers chosen by seniority would be moved from the Tier 2, entry-level pay rate of around $19 per hour to the Tier 1, non-entry-level rate of about $28 per hour. One of the stipulations in the 2011 UAW-Ford agreement was that only 20-percent of the total hourly workforce could be paid the Tier 2 wages agreed upon in 2007; after that, those workers had to be moved to Tier 1. Even so, the new Tier 1 status makes them less expensive to Ford than veteran Tier 1 workers because they receive fewer benefits. However, Automotive News had reported that same day that Ford was 69 workers shy of the limit, and when AN asked Ford about the situation Ford said it had "some room" on the entry-level roster. If workers do move to the higher pay grade, it will be the first time that's happened since the two-tier system was agreed. But it sounds like there's going to be some haggling between the UAW and Ford before that happens. Ford is the only one of the Detroit 3 automakers to have to work with a cap, since it didn't go through bankruptcy proceedings during The Great Recession; General Motors and Chrysler jettisoned the cap in 2009. GM is said to have 16 percent of its hourly workers at Tier 2 while Chrysler has 42 percent, but Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne has long been opposed to the two-wage system. The UAW is preparing for its 2015 negotiations with the US automakers. It wants to eliminate the difference in pay by going to the higher scale, if there is a consensus among automakers it seems to be that they also want a single wage, but less than the higher scale, with the addition of profit-based bonuses. The recent statement from the labor union is below. UAW President Dennis Williams and UAW-Ford Vice President Jimmy Settles announced today that the union is delivering on its promise to convert workers DETROIT, Jan. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- UAW President Dennis Williams and UAW-Ford Vice President Jimmy Settles announced today that the union is delivering on its promise to convert workers making entry-level wages to traditional employees. "The 2011 UAW-Ford agreement allows for a contractual limit of entry-level employees. Once that threshold is surpassed, entry-level employees convert by seniority to 'regular, non-entry level employment.' At this time, fifty-five UAW-Ford workers will receive the wage increases, which put them in the category of non entry-level employment.