GM Powers Through EV Headwinds to Post Broad 2025 Sales Gains Across All Brands
In a year marked by industry-wide resilience, General Motors emerged with a standout performance for 2025, achieving sales increases across its entire brand portfolio—Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC. The automaker reported a 6% overall sales jump compared to 2024, maintaining its dominant hold on the pickup and full-size SUV segments while climbing to become the second-largest seller of electric vehicles in the U.S.
The gains were broad-based. Buick sales rose 8%, fueled by a 50.6% surge for the Enclave. Cadillac saw an 8.3% increase, with the Escalade up 20.4%. Chevrolet posted a 4.7% gain, led by the Equinox (up 32.1%) and a remarkable 100.7% spike for the new Equinox EV. GMC rounded out the growth with a 6.2% increase, driven by double-digit performances from the Sierra 1500, Acadia, and Hummer EV.
This success came despite a challenging fourth quarter, where GM's sales dipped 7%. The company absorbed a $7.1 billion charge related to scaling back some of its more ambitious electric vehicle initiatives. However, it still managed to hit its revised annual earnings targets. A significant factor in the annual EV sales boost—which jumped 48%—was a wave of buyers seeking to utilize the federal $7,500 EV tax credit before its expiration on September 30, 2025. The credit's end correlated with a 43% drop in GM's EV sales in Q4, highlighting the ongoing sensitivity of the EV market to government incentives.
"Our portfolio is hitting the right notes with customers, from value-oriented models to premium offerings," said Duncan Aldred, GM's senior vice president and president of North America. "We're competing effectively with lower incentives than many competitors, which speaks to the underlying strength of our products."
Not all models shared in the growth. The Chevrolet Corvette saw a 26.4% decline, while the Blazer fell 11.5%. Other notable decreases included the Buick Envision, Cadillac CT4, GMC Canyon, and GMC Terrain, all down by double digits or nearly so.
Industry Voices:
"GM's across-the-board growth is a testament to a balanced strategy," said Michael Rossi, an automotive analyst with Detroit Capital Insights. "They're not overly reliant on one segment. Their ability to retain truck leadership while making tangible, albeit bumpy, progress in EVs is the playbook for a legacy automaker in transition."
"Let's not gloss over that $7 billion EV writedown and the post-incentive sales cliff," countered Sarah Chen, founder of the EV advocacy blog 'Current Affairs'. "This report masks a painful reality check. The Q4 EV numbers are a disaster, proving their growth was policy-driven, not product-driven. They're scrambling after betting big on an EV market that isn't materializing as fast as they hoped."
"As a dealer, the consistent foot traffic for models like the Sierra and Enclave is what pays the bills," noted Raymond 'Ray' Miller, owner of a multi-brand dealership in Ohio. "The EV stuff gets headlines, but these core ICE and hybrid models are the steady heartbeat of the business right now. GM is keeping that heart strong."
[Images: GM]
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