But some clouds have a golden lining. In the San Francisco Bay Area,
which includes San Jose and Silicon Valley to the south, while new auto
sales are down 25 percent overall in 2008 compared to 2007, sales to
Asians are down only 18 percent.
Asians buy one out of every four new vehicles in the Bay Area, according to our media partner, R.L. Polk & Co., which tracks new-vehicle registrations.
And what's gold with Asians when it comes time to plunk down cold cash for new wheels? We have just two words: Toyota and Honda. Nine of the 10 best-selling models among Bay Area Asians carry those Japanese badges. (No. 10 is the BMW 328.)
The Top 10: 1. Toyota Camry 2. Honda Civic 3. Toyota Corolla 4. Honda Accord 5. Toyota Prius 6. Toyota Sienna 7. Honda CR-V 8. Honda Odyssey 9. Toyota Scion (all models) 10. BMW 328
Bruce Giffin, R.L. Polk's manager of corporate market research, attributes the brand loyalty shown by Bay Area Asians to the quality that Asians -- like many American consumers -- associate with Honda and Toyota. "It is very unusual for a top 10 list to be so highly dominated by just two brands," Giffin says. "In other non-California markets, and among other ethnic groups, the mix of vehicles is far more diverse." And that mix includes not only more makes but more models and vehicle segments, such as pickups and crossovers.
As you take a look at the Bay Area's top 10 among Asians, it might be tempting to somehow link the Asians' 25 percent new car market share in the Bay Area to GM's overall market share being roughly that.
Asians shouldn't get undo credit (or blame, depending on your perspective) for the huge displacement. (Not so long ago GM accounted for half the new cars sold in America). Polk's stats show that the entire Bay Area, regardless of ethnicity, still went for Hondas and Toyotas, where models from those two manufacturers held eight out of the top 10 slots.
If you're wondering, African Americans and Latinos accounted for 2 percent and 14 percent, respectively, of new vehicle sales in the Bay Area, so far this year
Nationally, African American represented 7 percent, Latinos, 10 percent and Asians 5 percent of new car sales.
If Toyota and Honda want to keep or grow market share, they "have to continue building brand image and keep doing what they have been in terms of product quality, innovative design and styling," Giffin says.
Here's a closer look at ethnic market share in four large U.S. marketing areas:
| Designated Market Area |
Sales | Market Share |
| San Francisco |
33,967 | 24.4 percent |
| Los Angeles |
56,106 | 17 |
| New York |
32,939 | 9 |
| Houston | 14,372 | 8 |
| (percent) | African Americans |
Latinos |
| San Francisco |
2 | 14 |
| Los Angeles |
2 | 29 |
| New York |
5 | 11 |
| Houston |
6 | 19 |
Other 2008 nuggets mined from Polk's databases:
- The Toyota Prius hybrid is No. 2 in the S.F. Bay overall, but only No. 5 with Asians.
- For the year, the No. 1 and No. 2 top-selling models in America are the Ford F-Series pickup and the Chevrolet Silverado. These pickups are followed by the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Honda Civic.
- The three best-selling pickups among Asians are the Toyota Tacoma (No.18), Toyota Tundra (No. 28) and the Ford F-Series (No. 81)
- What are the top (and we use that term loosely) American models with Asians? The Ford Focus (No. 50), Chrysler Town and Country (No. 84) and the Saturn Vue (No. 85).
- Honda's CR-V makes the top 10 in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Houston.
- No surprise, but Asians rarely buy pickups. The only truck making the top 10 list was the Toyota Tacoma, in Houston.
Reported by Jeff Yip, jyip@onwheelsinc.com
