Class 8 Sales Growth Slows as October Purchases Rise 2.5%

This story appears in the Nov. 22 print edition of Transport Topics.

Broad-based growth in heavy-duty truck sales slowed in October, as Volvo and Daimler’s two brands grew by more than 40% each, but the four other major nameplates all slipped below their low October 2009 totals.

Overall, truck sales gained 2.5% from a year ago, WardsAuto.com reported Nov. 10.

Truck manufacturers and their dealers sold 8,714 Class 8s last month, compared with 8,500 in October 2009. For the first 10 months of this year, sales were up 15.3% to 85,796 from 74,380 in the same 2009 period.

But despite the slower growth, orders for future deliveries indicated sales should accelerate. ACT Research Co. said Nov. 17 that orders for new North American heavy trucks grew by 24% in October from a month earlier, and that OEMs’ backlog of unfulfilled orders increased.

“October order intake increased across all fleet sizes: small, medium and large, both in number of customers and total units,” said Brian Cota, vice president of sales for Freightliner Trucks.

“Our strategy to seed trucks earlier this year allowed customers to grow confidence in the technology and confirm the fuel economy results. EPA 2010 is no longer [a matter of] press releases and OEM claims, as our customers have the equipment and are back to operating their business,” Cota said by e-mail.

Freightliner, the flagship brand of Daimler Trucks North America, sold 3,128 trucks, 44.4% more than the 2,166 sold in October 2009. Cumulative sales this year jumped 44.3% from last year’s pace, to 28,030.

Western Star Trucks, Daimler’s niche brand, saw its monthly sales more than double to 132 from 52, and its year-to-date volume rose 56.8% to 911 big trucks.

Even with the closing of Sterling Trucks, DTNA’s combined volume grew by 42.1% for October and by 28.9% for the year’s first 10 months.

Volvo Trucks North America posted a 78.7% surge in October retail sales, moving 1,133 trucks, up from 634 in October 2009. Ten-month volume rose 36.7% to 7,585, Ward’s said.

VTNA spokesman John Mies said the Ward’s report supports “the fact that we’re seeing broad acceptance of our EPA 2010-compliant products across the highway segment. We’re feeling very good about our competitive position right now.”

VTNA’s Swedish parent company, Volvo AB, also released worldwide sales numbers for October. Total global sales grew 35% to 17,642 trucks, and by 56% for heavy trucks to 12,839 units.

For the four other North American truck brands — International, Kenworth, Mack and Peterbilt — results declined from a year ago.

International’s sales fell 40.4% to 1,553 units from the 2,606 sold in October 2009, although it placed second in market share for the month. Cumulative sales were up by 8% to 23,156 units.

“This reflects our build-and-hold strategy,” said spokesman Roy Wiley of Navistar Inc., International’s parent. Navistar’s management has said throughout the year the company would do well during the first half, selling from its inventory of 2009 engines.

However, now that International is selling 2010-compliant power plants in its vehicles, sales are falling off; executives said they expect them to reignite in coming months.

“We are confident that our engines and trucks will be well received. October is a momentary event and one month does not a trend make,” Wiley said.

The Paccar Inc. brands took third and fifth places for the month, with Peterbilt Motors selling 1,177 big trucks, 3.7% fewer than in October 2009. The cumulative volume was up 2.4% to 10,082 units.

Kenworth Trucks moved 972 big trucks last month, down 6.3% from 1,037 units a year ago. Year-to-date volume was 8,942, a 0.3% dip from the 2009 pace.

VTNA’s sister company, Mack Trucks, fell by 11.9% for the month to 619 units from 703. However, year-to-date sales were up 14.9% to 6,603 big trucks.

ACT said North American businesses ordered 18,914 Class 8s in October, or 24% more than in September. Company Vice President Steve Tam said the October 2009 level of 21,579 was much higher, but that was the peak of an orders spike, when fleets scrambled to buy the last of the 2009-model engines. In contrast, the current order level is seen as sustainable.

“Our outlook remains optimistic. Fleets are buying not just because of economic growth, but because this is the oldest [average age for the U.S.] fleet in some time,” said Tam. He added that ACT estimates the replacement level of Class 8 North American trucks is about 215,000 vehicles a year.

ACT predicted that this year would close out at 150,000 new orders, up from 127,000 last year.

However, the big growth will come next year, when orders are expected to reach 230,000 to 235,000, the Columbus, Ind., firm said.

ACT also said the backlog of not-yet-built Class 8s is now 29% above this year’s low point, and that last month was the second best month for orders since April 2008, ranking only behind October 2009.