International Nameplates Climb in 'Clunkers' Program

SEE ALSO: Cash for Clunkers Consumer Guide

Washington DC August 17, 2009; The AIADA newsletter reported that according to the Detroit News, Japanese automakers have gained significant ground in the U.S. government's $3 billion "cash for clunkers" program.

Toyota dethroned GM as the top seller, selling 18.9 percent of vehicles purchased through the clunkers program. The largest three Japanese automakers – Toyota, Honda, and Nissan – saw their collective market share jump 2.7 percentage points to 39.2 percent of "clunkers" sales.

International automakers now dominate the top 10 list of vehicles sold through the program. The Toyota Corolla retained the top sales spot overall in data compiled as of early Friday, followed by the Honda Civic. The Toyota Camry was fourth, followed by the Toyota Prius. Rounding out the top 10 was the Hyundai Elantra in the sixth spot, the Honda Fit in eighth, the Nissan Versa in ninth, and the Honda CR-V FWD in tenth.Click here for a chart of the automakers' share of Cash for Clunkers sales.

Cars purchased under the program are, on average, 19 percent above the average fuel economy of all new cars available.

Click here to read more from the Detroit News about Cash for Clunkers sales.