Automotive News / March 1, 2006 - 2:13 pm

Dale Jewett

U.S. sales at Ford Motor Co. in February fell 4.2 percent from the same month a year earlier to 242,652 units. At General Motors, sales for the month fell 2.6 percent from February 2005 to 297,481 units.

After two months of this year, GM's sales are up 1.5 percent to 590,612 units. Ford Motor's sales are down 1.5 percent to 447,175 units.

But the automakers are headed in different directions in fleet sales.

GM executives pointed out that the automaker's retail sales rose 1 percent in February when compared with the same month last year. Fleet deliveries dropped 11 percent for the month, sales analyst Paul Ballew said. That drop explained, in part, the fall in GM sales, he said.

"Fleet is going to be a challenge for us in the next few months and the rest of the year as we aggressively back off it," Ballew said. "In some months it could be down 15,000 to 20,000 units."

But at Ford, fleet sales were up 11 percent from a year ago, and for the year to date are up 15 percent, said George Pipas, Ford's chief sales analyst.

Ford's retail sales in February were down 11 percent from a year ago, Pipas said.

"At the retail level, we have not yet reached the stabilization but we have quite substantially reduced the rate of decline," Pipas said.

After two months of this year, GM's sales are up 1.5 percent to 590,612 units. Ford Motor's sales are down 1.5 percent to 447,175 units.

Coincidence? I think not....

Remember; no domestic can conquest import sales.

What about DCX, I think they sold a lot to fleet in feb.

YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!

Teehee Ford...