America's "Top 20" Best-selling Cars in 2020

It was clear from the previous post that Ford was the most popular brand in the United States last year. Toyota and Chevrolet, placed next in the pecking order, were not far off though. Is the same trend observed in sales of individual models too? Let's find out.

Before we get into the details, here's the list of America's 'Top 20' best-selling cars in 2020:

F-Series tops the charts

Alright, this has become an annual affair, pandemic or not. 

• Ford's F-Series ended 2020 as the most popular vehicle in the United States of America. 
• This marks an incredible 39th year at the top of the sales chart for this behemoth.
• This is also the 44th year in a row the F-Series has finished as America's favourite pick-up truck.
• Remarkably, the F-Series managed this feat despite being in the last year of its life cycle and the disruptions caused by the pandemic.

With the next-generation F-Series - including the electrified 'PowerBoost' variants - already in the dealerships, the stars are aligned for Ford to mark four decades of leadership with this truck by the end of 2021. Watch this space.

Chevrolet and Ram trade places

• Finishing runner-up to the F-Series was its arch-rival from Chevrolet, the Silverado.
• After losing out to Ram's stylish new Pick-Up in 2019, the Silverado was back on top in its own little duel.
• That the Silverado managed to improve its numbers by 3% over 2019 despite the pandemic goes to show how good an outing the Chevy had in 2020.
• Ram was relegated to its usual third spot in the list and would be itching to get back ahead.   

SUVs, Crossovers and Trucks gain at the expense of sedans

• With over 430,000 units sold, Toyota's RAV4 was America's best-selling vehicle that wasn't a pick-up truck. Honda's CR-V came in next but the gap between the two is too big to make Toyota worry. In fact, with three models in the Top 10 and five in the Top 15, Toyota is sitting pretty. It's the competition that has to worry. 
• Toyota Camry - America's erstwhile favourite - is holding its own so far, managing to keep the Chevrolet Equinox and the other fast-rising SUVs and trucks behind. It's buddies from Japan - the Civic, Corolla and Accord - have all lost positions with each reporting declines of over 20%.
• GMC Sierra and Ford Explorer had an amazing run, growing their sales by 9% and an astonishing 21% respectively last year. Add the Sierra's numbers to the Silverado's and GM wins the great American pick-up war. Explorer's lead in the mid-size SUV segment gave Ford reasons to cheer though.
• Anything that wasn't a SUV, crossover or truck lost positions and reported a bigger drop in sales compared to those high-riding body-styles. Notable exceptions were Nissan's Rogue and Ford's Escape which should be a great cause of concern for the two brands.
• Two models each from Jeep and Subaru complete the Top 20 line-up with the latter's Forester ousting the former's Cherokee off the list.

While the trends are clearly visible, we shouldn't be reading much into 2020's sales figures as stated in the previous post. After all, it was an abnormal year. Let's wait and watch how the American market unfolds this year!