I thought I would provide another exciting update on the sales race back in ’59 – I think this is the first time Studebaker cracked the top ten for quite awhile, thanks to the Lark of course. Registrations for the MONTH of February 1959 (from the April 20, 1959 issue of Automotive News)
Studebaker and Rambler where both gainers, while it looks like all Chrysler products were sliding.
For comparison, here are the top ten imports, also for the Month of February ’59:
Finally, for you truck lovers out there, here are the February (one month) 1959 new truck registration numbers: (from the May 4, 1959 Automotive News)
Feb ’59 Position |
Feb ’59 Registrations |
Make |
Feb ’58 Registrations |
Feb ’58 Position |
1 |
106,506 |
Chevrolet |
92,401 |
1 |
2 |
103,498 |
Ford |
71,865 |
2 |
3 |
27,732 |
Olds |
24,789 |
4 |
4 |
27,349 |
Pontiac |
18,556 |
6 |
5 |
21,856 |
Rambler |
9,062 |
10 |
6 |
20,828 |
Buick |
21,357 |
5 |
7 |
20,600 |
Plymouth |
27,091 |
3 |
8 |
11,906 |
Cad. |
9,789 |
7 |
9 |
11,084 |
Mercury |
9,699 |
8 |
10 |
9,808 |
STUDEBAKER |
2,913 |
14 |
11 |
7,655 |
Dodge |
9,805 |
9 |
12 |
3,936 |
Edsel |
3,565 |
13 |
13 |
3,812 |
Chrysler |
4,565 |
11 |
14 |
2,841 |
DeSoto |
3,919 |
12 |
15 |
2,503 |
Lincoln |
2,718 |
15 |
16 |
1,228 |
Imperial |
1,245 |
16 |
For comparison, here are the top ten imports, also for the Month of February ’59:
Feb ’59 Position |
Feb ’59 Registrations |
Make |
Feb ’58 Registrations |
Feb ’58 Position |
1 |
7,428 |
VW |
5,807 |
1 |
2 |
5,390 |
Renault |
2,218 |
2 |
3 |
3,330 |
English Ford |
1,516 |
3 |
4 |
2,856 |
Simca |
908 |
5 |
5 |
2,755 |
Opel |
726 |
8 |
6 |
2,619 |
Fiat |
878 |
6 |
7 |
2,011 |
Hillman |
936 |
4 |
8 |
1,610 |
Vauxhall |
||
9 |
1,477 |
Triumph |
716 |
9 |
10 |
1,359 |
Volvo |
Make |
February 1959 New Truck Registrations |
Chevrolet |
23,753 |
Ford |
19,498 |
GMC |
5,249 |
International |
5,109 |
Dodge |
3,674 |
Willys |
1,751 |
White |
1,100 |
Mack |
937 |
STUDEBAKER |
476 |
Diamond T |
179 |
Brockway |
58 |
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