Toyota tops GM for 2021 U.S. sales crown

For the first time in nine decades, General Motors was not the top-selling automaker in the U.S. last year.

Instead, Toyota — a Japanese automaker that didn't sell its first vehicle in the U.S. until 1958, when GM's 90-year sales streak was already 27 years old — grabbed the sales crown by a margin of nearly 130,000 in 2021, thanks mostly to its ability to manage the global microchip shortage and COVID-19 disruptions.

In year-end figures released Tuesday, Toyota Motor North America reported sales of 2,332,262 light vehicles in the U.S. last year, up 10 percent from 2020. GM reported U.S. sales of 2,218,228 in 2021, down 13 percent from 2020.

Toyota first bested GM in the second quarter, and repeated the feat three months later as the chip crisis bit hard into both automakers' output. However, Toyota's global production footprint — it was expected to finish as the world's largest automaker in 2021 for the second consecutive year, again besting German rival Volkswagen Group — and North American plants helped it to keep ahead of GM in the U.S.

"Toyota is grateful to our loyal customers for putting their safety and trust in Toyota and Lexus vehicles," Jack Hollis, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor North America, said in a statement. "Being No. 1 is never a focus or priority. The company's focus has always been being the best brand in terms of safety, quality and value in customers' minds.

"And as part of our continuous improvement philosophy, we are always finding better ways of doing things, and ultimately, make better products customers love and trust."

Toyota Motor North America, which continues to report sales on a monthly basis, finished December down 30 percent at 174,115 vehicles. The Toyota brand was down 29 percent in December to 150,072, while Lexus was down 37 percent at 24,043 vehicles.

GM reports its U.S. sales quarterly. In the fourth quarter, its sales were down 43 percent to 440,745. Chevrolet sales declined 45 percent to 288,647, GMC sales declined 38 percent to 100,919, Buick sales declined 35 percent to 28,789 and Cadillac sales declined 48 percent to 22,385.

Hannah Lutz contributed to this report.