Chevrolet Cruze's success shocks the auto industry

"No one expected Chevrolet Cruze to score so big so fast on sales -- no one outside General Motors, at least.

In its first 12 months of sales, the Cruze compact ranked 10th among all U.S. vehicle purchases. The car's Lordstown, Ohio, plant has been running three shifts plus overtime Saturdays since late spring and has still had difficulty meeting racing consumer demand.

All this is a "told-you-so" for GM. Industry analysts were skeptical when GM North American President Mark Reuss espoused a plan to launch the Cruze on three shifts.

After all, running the plant that much suggests sales of more than 20,000 a month, a level which the Cruze's stripped-down Cobalt predecessor never reached, even in much more-robust economies. But the Cruze is on pace to meet that goal this year."  [Continue reading...]