Tundra had a tough month, but Toyota's not concerned
Mark Rechtin
Automotive News
February 21, 2008 - 12:01 am ET
LOS ANGELES - Sales of the Tundra fell short of expectations in January,
but
Toyota is not worried about meeting its annual objective for the full-size
pickup.
Last year, the Tundra's better sales months were in the 18,000 to 22,000
range. But January's mark of 12,073 was well below that. On an annualized
basis, that came to a 185,000-unit clip. That's well below the
200,000-plus
mark Toyota has set for 2008.
" I learned from (former Toyota boss) Bob McCurry to never make long-term
decisions based on January and February business," said Jim Lentz,
president
of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A." We're not pushing the panic button."
January is a slow month for Toyota trucks, usually representing about 6.5
percent of the annual sales mark, Lentz said in an interview. He added
that
February sales are looking " pretty good."
" We have plenty of time to recover from 185,000 up to 200,000. The first
half of 2008, especially in pickup, is going to be more challenging. We're
comfortable with where we are," Lentz said.
Toyota will not pile on the incentives in reaction to a slow January,
Lentz
said, adding that, " Typically we follow Detroit (in launching
incentives),
we don't lead."
|
