Toyota passes Ford in U.S. sales in 2007

January 3, 2008
Toyota passes Ford in U.S. sales in 2007

DETROIT - Detroit's automakers went out with a whimper in 2007, as a lackluster December failed to pull the industry out of the lowest U.S. auto sales slump in nearly a decade.

Ford Motor Co. was knocked from its perch as the No. 2 U.S. auto seller, a position it held since 1931, while General Motors appeared likely to lose its title of the largest automaker in the world. Both were dethroned by the juggernaut that is Toyota.

Toyota Motor Corp. sold 2.62 million cars and trucks in the U.S. in 2007, which amounted to 48,226 more than Ford, according to sales figures released Thursday. Toyota's sales were up 3 percent for the year, buoyed by new products such as the Toyota Tundra pickup, which saw sales jump 57 percent. Ford's sales fell 12 percent to 2.57 million vehicles.

Toyota likely to emerge as worldwide leader

January 3, 2008
Toyota likely to emerge as worldwide leader

DETROIT - If its estimates hold true, Toyota Motor Corp. will depose General Motors Corp. as the world's largest automaker in 2007.

GM said Thursday it made 9.284 million vehicles worldwide last year, roughly 226,000 fewer than Toyota's 2007 production estimate of 9.51 million.