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Jan 4, 2023 - Economy & Business

Toyota loses U.S. vehicle sales title to General Motors

Nathan Bomey
A woman in a white suit jacket stands with her hands spread open against a backdrop of an electronic screen with an SUV on it

General Motors CEO Mary Barra is shown on screen as her recorded keynote address is delivered digitally at CES 2022 at The Venetian Las Vegas. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

The "happy dance" is over for Toyota.

Driving the news: General Motors has reclaimed its title as the best-selling automaker in the U.S. after losing the crown to Toyota in 2021 for the first time since the 1930s.

Details: GM reported Wednesday that it sold 2.274 million vehicles in the U.S. in 2022, up 2.5% for the year.

  • Toyota's U.S. sales slipped 9.6% to 2.108 million.

Flashback: When Toyota dethroned GM in 2021, CEO Akio Toyoda said he did a "happy dance."

Yes, but: Toyota gets the last laugh. It was the world's best-selling automaker in 2021 and is not in jeopardy of losing that title to GM, which trails Toyota by several million vehicles globally.

💭 Nathan's thought bubble: The sales crown — both globally and domestically — amounts to not much more than bragging rights.

  • But as Toyota's past response illustrates, the boss still cares.
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