For the record, General Motors states it is the top-selling automaker in the United States for the second quarter of 2026. Sales numbers from almost every automaker are rolling in, and through June, GM is still ahead of Toyota by nearly 100,000 vehicles. However, a closer look reveals something that we suspect GM executives are keenly aware of. Every automaker beneath the GM umbrella logged a year-over-year sales drop, causing the conglomerate to fall 6.8% through the first half of the year. Toyota climbed 0.5%… a small gain, but a gain nonetheless.
2024 – 2026 Chevrolet Trailblazer 2nd Gen (C1) Facelift SUV side angle in tanChevrolet
GM points to reduced EV demand, discontinued vehicles, and some “inventory constraints” for the drop. Indeed, Cadillac, which lost the XT6 and has a lineup packed with EVs, is down 22.3% for the year. Buick isn’t faring much better with a 20.9% drop. GMC only slipped 0.2% thanks to positive Sierra sales and strong numbers for the Terrain and Canyon. But Chevrolet is GM’s volume brand by a very wide margin, so when things slip there, people notice. And with a 5.9% sales decline through the first six months of 2026, things are slipping.
Here are the hits and misses currently happening in the world of Chevrolet sales.
Traverse And Trailblazer Stepping Up When Chevy Needs Them Most
2024 – 2026 Chevrolet Traverse 3rd Gen (GM C1XX-2) SUVChevrolet
Out of 17 vehicles Chevy lists in its sales report (including all Silverado variants grouped together), just five have positive sales growth through H1 2026. Of those, the full-size Chevrolet Traverse and the subcompact Trailblazer are champions with the best numbers, excluding the Chevy Bolt and its “incredible” 3,334% increase since going back on sale in January. To be more specific, Trailblazer is up 9.7% for the year with 59,816 sales in the book. The Traverse is doing way better – up 25.7% with 81,417 sales.
GM doesn’t report monthly sales, but second-quarter stats show the Trailblazer taking a big leap. In fact, Trailblazer was Chevy’s best vehicle for the period percentage-wise, climbing 28.4% to outpace the Traverse at 19.5%. The two SUVs, along with the Corvette at 23.8%, posted the biggest Bow Tie percentages for the quarter (excluding the aforementioned Bolt). The only other Chevy with a sales gain for the period was the LCF commercial truck, up 19.9% for the quarter and 5.0% for the year. Though with just 2,333 sales for the year so far, LCF is decidedly not a volume seller.
Trax And Equinox Down, But Still Very Important
2025 Chevrolet Trax front 3/4 angle in green while parked Chevrolet
The Equinox is still the best-selling Chevrolet outside the Silverado juggernaut. Its sales are down 4.2% through June, thanks to a slow start earlier in the year. Equinox sales were actually up 6.9% in the second quarter, and with 124,375 total sales thus far, it’s on pace to reach 250,000.
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As for Chevy’s cheapest new vehicle, the $21,700 Trax also had a slow start but is recovering. Q2 sales dropped just 0.5%, but for the year, it’s down 8.0% with nearly 110,000 sold. Still, it’s a very important vehicle for Chevrolet, offering buyers neat styling and a nice interior with one of the lowest new-car prices in America. It’s the company’s third-best seller behind the Silverado and Equinox.
Speaking Of Silverado
2027 Chevrolet Silverado 1500Chevrolet
We can’t talk Chevrolet sales without touching on the second-best selling vehicle in America. With all Silverado variants grouped together, sales are down 7.7% for the quarter and 4.6% for the year, totaling 276,074 units. Light-duty and heavy-duty trucks are the vast majority of those, but there is a glimmer of positivity in the details. Light-duty Silverado 1500s are up slightly, 3.1% to be exact.
That’s particularly interesting since the next-generation Silverado was recently revealed for 2027. Usually, we see a sales decline ahead of a new model launch as buyers delay purchases to get the latest and greatest version. Either Chevrolet is pushing some fantastic deals, or buyers want the outgoing truck with its familiar engine family instead of stepping forward with Chevy’s next-gen V8 engines.
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CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
General Motors is desperately clinging to a slim sales lead over Toyota Motor North America as the best-selling automaker in America. To retain that title, Chevrolet needs to at least hold steady on sales and thus far, that isn’t happening. With the next-generation Silverado reaching dealers later this year, there’s potential for Silverado sales to slip further, putting even more pressure on other Chevrolet vehicles to pick up the slack.
