The Detroit News is reporting that Honda seems to be profiting most from Toyota’s recall problems. Comparing sales data from the first twenty days of February to the same time frame in January, the newspaper found that Toyota’s market share has taken a nose dive, dropping from 17.5% to 12.2% in just one month. At the same time Honda’s share rose from 11.2% to 13% while Ford, posting the second best gain, saw a bump from 10.6% to 11.7%. The numbers reflect retail sales only.

The data show that the Chevrolet brand also slid slightly from 10.3% to 10.0% despite generous incentives and heavy marketing. Honda went fairly light on the incentives and avoided special offers to Toyota owners to entice them to trade. Also interesting to note that the two Korean brands, Hyundai and Kia, now account for 7% market share.

If the trend continues for the rest of the month, Honda will emerge as America’s most popular brand and, with a little push, Ford could regain its number two position.

--M.D.