·      Brand’s continued growth in emerging markets key to GM’s 9.2 million total sales

DETROIT – Chevrolet, the world’s-fastest growing major automotive brand, sold more than 4.95 million vehicles in 2012, setting a global sales record and driving General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) global sales to more than 9.2 million vehicles, a 2.9 percent gain compared with 2011. 

While the United States was the largest individual market for Chevrolet with total vehicle sales of 1.85 million, more than 60 percent of the brand’s sales came from other markets including Brazil (643,000), China (627,000), Russia (205,000), South Korea (125,000) and India (92,000). All posted strong sales due to new vehicle entries. 

“Chevrolet is in the midst of the most aggressive rollout of new products in its history, which helped us deliver our ninth-consecutive quarter of record global sales,” said Don Johnson, Chevrolet vice president of U.S. sales and service.

Guided by a new global vision, ‘Find New Roads,’ that is rooted in the brand’s legacy of ingenuity, Johnson said Chevrolet is poised for continued growth in 2013 with 13 new or significantly redesigned products being launched in the United States, including the all-new Corvette Stingray, Silverado and Impala, and 12 additional product launches around the world.  

Chevrolet is building its global presence by delivering small cars like the Cruze, Sonic/Aveo and Spark, the midsize Malibu, and crossovers and trucks like the Spin, Trax, Orlando and Colorado that are designed for the varied driving conditions and customer preferences around the world. 

The Cruze compact sedan led the brand with global sales of more than 755,000 in 2012, making it the best-selling Chevrolet nameplate around the world with nearly 1.9 million sold since its launch in 2009.  In the United States, Chevrolet will launch a diesel engine- powered Cruze in the second quarter.

The top 10 Chevrolet sales markets in 2012 were:

On a corporate basis, GM sales in North America were up 3.2 percent and 10.1 percent throughout its International Operations over 2011.

General Motors Global Sales Summary

GM North America = United States, Canada, Mexico and other North American markets

GM in Europe = Western, Central and Eastern Europe plus Russia/ CIS

GM International Operations = Asia-Pacific, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East

Note: Iran, North Korea, Syria and Sudan are excluded from sales volume and market share calculations; * 4,053,385 including Russia/CIS