“We believe the program was a strong shot in the arm for the economy and that our four core brands – Chevrolet, GMC, Buick and Cadillac – are well-positioned with new products to take advantage of the ongoing recovery in the market,” said Mark LaNeve, vice president of U.S. sales.

Locally produced GM vehicles fared worse than the company overall.

U.S. sales of the Cadillac CTS tumbled 56 percent, while the STS skidded 65.4 percent. Both sedans are made at the Lansing Grand River assembly plant.

Meanwhile, U.S. sales of the Buick Enclave dropped 31.7 percent, while the GMC Acadia slid 25.1 percent and the Saturn Outlook plunged 68.1 percent. All three crossovers are made at the Lansing Delta Township assembly plant.

There was no tally for the Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon, also made at Lansing Grand River, because the vehicle just went into production Aug. 19.

Sales of local Cadillac models were down because of a lack of competitive leasing, which GM recently brought back for several models, GM spokesman John McDonald said.

No ‘Clunkers’

Also, the Enclave, Acadia and Outlook didn’t qualify for the Cash for Clunkers program.

“People were just knocking themselves over to get small cars, small crossovers, small pickups. The larger segment of vehicles suffered in August,” McDonald said.

Shaheen  Buick Pontiac GMC in Mt. Pleasant sold 105 cars through the Cash for Clunkers,  and the flow of potential car buyers is continuing.

“Now that the Clunkers has stopped, we still have showroom traffic,” Shaheen said. “Not as brisk as during Cash for Clunkers, but it is still at a decent pace and we’re seeing our used-car department picking up.”

Capitol Cadillac couldn’t take advantage of the Clunkers program because none of the vehicles the Lansing dealership sold qualified, sales manager Greg Miller said.

Inventory low

And although demand has been high for locally made Cadillac models, Miller said sales suffered because inventory was low while the Lansing Grand River plant sat idle for most of the summer. It resumed production in early August.

“We’re optimistic about having a great September,” Miller said.

“New leasing is back; that’s going to be a huge shot in the arm for General Motors.”

GM’s performance was in stark contrast to Ford Motor Co., which saw sales climb 17.2 percent in August from a year earlier. Japanese automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. also posted gains in August, with Toyota’s U.S. sales rising 6.4 percent and Honda gaining 9.9 percent.

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