General Motors' US vehicle sales plunged 49 percent in January while Ford's sales dropped 40 percent, starting 2009 at an abysmal pace for the whole auto industry as lower sales to fleet buyers like rental car companies weighed down the results. Toyota's sales dropped 32 percent for the month, and Honda's sales fell 28 percent, putting the overall industry on track for its fourth straight month in which US sales plunged 30 percent or more. But Subaru bucked the trend of declines for a second month in a row, posting an 8 percent sales increase, and Hyundai said its sales jumped 14 percent. Hyundai credited its increase to its offer to cover a new vehicle's depreciation if customers return a car within 12 months because they are unable to make the payments. “This program gets to the root cause of today's economic concerns - fear of job loss,” Hyundai regional general manager Peter DiPersia said in a statement. Chrysler's sales chief, Steven Landry, said that US industry sales could drop as much as 35 percent in January. The annualized sales rate for the month could drop below 10 million for the first time in more than 26 years, he said. Chrysler executives said that talks with Fiat SpA about an alliance are progressing well, but Chrysler does not need the Italian automaker's help to prove its viability to the US government. Chrysler and Fiat disclosed last month that they have a nonbinding preliminary deal for the Italian automaker to take a 35 percent stake in Chrysler in exchange for access to Fiat's small-car technology.
