Thanks to some deep diving into the monthly and 2015 year-to-date pickup truck sales numbers by our data experts at Cars.com, we've been able to pull out some interesting segment sales data. (Manufacturers do not break down their pickup truck sales by weight class.) Here's what our analysis found: In the half-ton marketplace, the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 has higher sales so far this year than the perennial class leader, the Ford F-150. That's big news and could hurt overall F-Series sales if that trend continues.
Given that information, how is Ford still so far ahead in monthly and year-to-date total sales?
The simple answer is heavy-duty truck sales, meaning three-quarter-ton and one-ton trucks. Although typically nowhere near the half-ton sales volume, the HD market is substantial and profitable. As you can see from the accompanying charts, this is how Ford is maintaining its lead on the other truckmakers while slipping a bit in half-ton category. Ford is so dominant with its F-250 and F-350 sales that even when combining Chevy and GMC HD numbers, they still don't come close to the Ford Super Duty. And it should be noted that Ram does a solid job of selling its HD trucks, coming in second place in each of our charts.