Small Car Sales In America - May 2016 YTD

U.S. sales of compact cars fell 10% in May 2016, a decline not solely attributable to an abbreviated sales month. The auto sales calendar in May 2016 didn't begin until May 3, so there were two fewer "selling days" in May 2016 than there were in May 2015. But that only accounts for 7.7% of the May decline.

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U.S. Vehicle Sales Rankings By Model - May 2016 YTD
U.S. Car Sales Rankings By Model - May 2016 YTD

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Yet while sales of virtually every compact car declined in May, the Kia Forte jumped 15% and America's second-best-selling car, the Honda Civic, posted a 3% increase. As a result, the new Civic's share of the compact car market grew from 15.3% in May 2015 to 17.6% in May 2016. Year-to-date, through five months, the Civic's share of the compact category jumped from 13.6% to 17.7%.

Worthy of note: in May, the daily selling rate of the Mazda 3, Nissan Sentra, Subaru Impreza, and Toyota Corolla all increased.

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Among subcompact cars, the Nissan Versa's 20% increase and the Hyundai Accent's 23% improvement caused the duo to earn 43% of all subcompact sales. Their rivals, new Scion iA excluded, all posted year-over-year declines in May 2016. Chevrolet Sonic sales tumbled 67%. 

It was also common in May to see sales of niche market small cars – Fiat 500, Mini Cooper, Smart Fortwo, Volkswagen Beetle, and others – take hard hits as the U.S. market veers away from cars in general. Overall U.S. auto sales declined 6% in May, which equaled a daily sales rate increase. But overall U.S. passenger car volume tumbled 16%.

You can click any model name in the tables below to find historical monthly and yearly U.S. auto sales data. You can also select a make and model at GCBC's Sales Stats page. These tables are sortable, so you can rank small cars of all kinds any which way you like. Suggestions on how GCBC should break down segments can be passed on through the Contact page.

Click Column Headers To Sort • June 2016 • April 2016 • May 2015

Compact	May 2016	May 2015	% Change	2016 YTD	2015 YTD	%  Change
Acura ILX *	1424	1673	-14.9%	7344	6809	7.9%
Buick Verano	2070	3246	-36.2%	12,694	15,279	-16.9%
Chevrolet Cruze	16,671	23,752	-29.8%	68,065	105,291	-35.4%
Dodge Dart	4514	8667	-47.9%	25,774	42,353	-39.1%
Ford Focus	17,455	23,934	-27.1%	83,653	95,028	-12.0%
Honda Civic	35,396	34,472	2.7%	158,030	129,574	22.0%
Hyundai Elantra	22,168	23,432	-5.4%	73,892	102,085	-27.6%
Kia Forte	9910	8584	15.4%	43,572	35,275	23.5%
Mazda 3	10,127	10,316	-1.8%	42,982	45,626	-5.8%
Mitsubishi Lancer	929	1463	-36.5%	7406	9367	-20.9%
Nissan Sentra	20,204	20,616	-2.0%	102,293	88,701	15.3%
Scion iM	1743	---	---	7511	---	---
Subaru Impreza	8255	8538	-3.3%	37,647	39,109	-3.7%
Toyota Corolla	34,872	36,768	-5.2%	151,243	159,486	-5.2%
Volkswagen Golf	4475	6308	-29.1%	21,716	24,579	-11.6%
Volkswagen Jetta	10,945	12,875	-15.0%	49,662	55,938	-11.2%
---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Total	201,158	224,644	-10.4%	893,484	954,500	-6.4%

Subcompact	May 2016	May 2015	% Change	2016 YTD	2015 YTD	% Change
Chevrolet Sonic	2980	9067	-67.1%	20,709	29,082	-28.8%
Ford Fiesta	6150	9426	-34.8%	21,475	27,518	-22.0%
Honda Fit	5706	6342	-10.0%	22,351	30,965	-27.8%
Hyundai Accent	5432	4428	22.7%	36,191	29,435	23.0%
Kia Rio	2241	3615	-38.0%	10,130	12,415	-18.4%
Mazda 2	---	10	-100%	3	259	-98.8%
Nissan Versa	12,114	10,121	19.7%	57,778	56,765	1.8%
Scion iA	3056	---	---	13,488	---	---
Toyota Prius C	1909	3763	-49.3%	10,218	16,165	-36.8%
Toyota Yaris	1236	2401	-48.5%	5284	9878	-46.5%
---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Total	40,824	49,173	-17.0%	197,627	212,482	-7.0%

City Car	May 2016	May 2015	% Change	2016 YTD	2015 YTD	% Change
Chevrolet Spark	3495	2705	29.2%	11,732	15,552	-24.6%
Mitsubishi Mirage	2098	3369	-37.7%	11,632	11,832	-1.7%
Scion iQ	1	64	-98.4%	5	369	-98.6%
Smart Fortwo	420	837	-49.8%	2186	2850	-23.3%
---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Total	6014	6975	-14.8%	25,555	30,603	-16.5%

Warm Hatches	May 2016	May 2015	% Change	2016 YTD	2015 YTD	% Change
Fiat 500 *	1553	2614	-40.6%	6819	13,107	-48.0%
Hyundai Veloster *	1965	2249	-12.6%	11,223	9136	22.8%
Mini Cooper *	3350	3814	-12.2%	15,331	17,259	-11.2%
Scion tC *	1043	1878	-44.5%	4881	7944	-38.6%
Volkswagen Beetle *	1178	2685	-56.1%	5668	10,809	-47.6%
---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Total	9089	13,240	-31.3%	43,922	58,255	-24.6%

Tall Hatchbacks & Crossovers	May 2016	May 2015	% Change	2016 YTD	2015 YTD	% Change
Buick Encore *	6522	5400	20.8%	30,330	25,023	21.2%
Chevrolet Trax *	5102	5707	-10.6%	23,339	18,844	23.9%
Fiat 500L	334	1245	-73.2%	2064	5546	-62.8%
Fiat 500X *	1250	8	15,525%	6308	8	78,750%
Honda HR-V *	7392	6381	15.8%	29,876	6381	368%
Kia Soul	13,706	13,886	-1.3%	58,299	56,142	3.8%
Mazda CX-3 *	1570	---	---	7990	---	---
Mini Countryman *	1236	1768	-30.1%	4851	6237	-22.2%
Mini Paceman *	9	251	-96.4%	48	590	-91.9%
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport *	3060	3384	-9.6%	13,372	13,945	-4.1%
Nissan Cube	1	108	-99.1%	15	675	-97.8%
Nissan Juke *	2271	2625	-13.5%	10,032	12,080	-17.0%
Scion xB	135	1498	-91.0%	2553	7376	-65.4%
Scion xD	---	92	-100%	8	659	-98.8%
Subaru Crosstrek *	8467	7876	7.5%	35,624	34,893	2.1%
---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Total	51,055	50,229	1.6%	224,709	188,399	19.3%

Source: Automakers & ANDC
* vehicle also displayed in another GCBC segment breakdown
GCBC isn't here to break down segments, an impossible task for any group, but to display sales data for the sake of comparison. The more ways sales data can be displayed, the better. This explains why you'll see the Encore and XV Crosstrek are listed with small SUVs, too, and the Acura ILX shown with mainstream cars is also displayed with luxury cars... because readers have wanted it both ways. You can always find the sales results for EVERY vehicle and form your own competitive sets by using the All Vehicle Rankings posts.

RECOMMENDED READING
Small Car Sales In America - June 2016
Small Car Sales In America - April 2016
Small Car Sales In America - May 2015
Top 20 Best-Selling Cars In America - May 2016
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings - May 2016
Midsize Car Sales In America - May 2016