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452 Chevrolet Cobalts Sold in November, GM Reports"
DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. announced yesterday that 452 Chevrolet Cobalts, the new vehicle now in production at GM's Lordstown complex, were sold in November.Last month's sales were the first-ever for GM's new small car, which is designed to attract high-end buyers to the small-car market and compete directly with Honda, Toyota and Volkswagen.Officials at the Lordstown plant reported two weeks ago that vehicles were being shipped to dealers. The goal was to deliver 5,000 Cobalts to Chevrolet dealers by early December.The plant is currently producing about 200 Cobalts per shift, or about 600 a day, officials said.Sales of Chevrolet Cavaliers, which the Lordstown plant produced for two decades, fell by 20% last month, posting sales of 13,967 units compared to year-ago numbers of 18,354.Cavaliers and Ponitac Sunfires are no longer being made in the United States.Sales for GM's new entry-level vehicle, the Aveo, were up 88% in November compared to last year. Last month dealers sold 6,212 Aveos compared to 3,442 units for the same period in 2003.GM dealers also reported total sales of 303,891 new cars and trucks for November, down 13% compared to year-ago sales. Truck sales were down 10% and car sales dropped by 17 %, the corporation said.Although truck sales were down last month, the company reported truck sales are up 1% overall for the year. Sales of sports-utility vehicles also increased overall this year, up by 6%.The fourth-quarter production forecast for GM North America remains unchanged at 1.27 million vehicles, the company reported. In the fourth quarter of 2003, GM North America built 1.38 million vehicles. Total production forecast for the 2004 calendar year remains unchanged at 5.21 million vehicles.Visit General Motors at www.gm.com"