2016 was another strong sales year for full-size trucks, the F-Series, Silverado, and Ram, with SUVs like the Rogue and RAV4 making a solid showing, and Toyota and Honda each landing three models in the top ten.
Ford F-Series
The Ford F-Series moved 820,799 units in 2016, a steady 5.2% growth over the year prior, keeping the iconic full-size truck at the top of the heap.
Ford delivered some cosmetic changes for 2016, including a few new exterior colors and appearance packages, plus a redesigned and more modern infotainment system and some more luxury options inside the Limited edition, including heated seats with a massage feature up front.
Chevrolet Silverado
The Chevrolet Silverado took a small dip in 2016, selling 574,876 units, 4.3% less than the brand sold in 2015. So, the Silverado holds its place in the top three, but the gap between the Chevy and the Ram is getting slimmer year after year.
You’ll find the biggest changes for the 2016 Silverado under teh hood. THe truck is now available with a powerful 5.3L V8 engine delivering a whopping 355 hp. The front end also gets a nice visual redesign, and you can expect some new onboard tech, including an Enhanced Driver Alert package.
Ram Pickup
The Ram Pickup saw a strong bump in sales for 2016, moving 489,418 units, nearly forty thousand more pickups than the brand sold in 2015, putting the pickup in a position to overtake the Silverado for second place in the coming years.
For 2016, the Ram Pickup saw a handful of improvements to the truck’s safety features, earning it a four-star overall rating with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, including a bunch of perfect five-star ratings for the Administration’s side impact crash tests.
Toyota Camry
The Toyota Camry saw a drop of nearly 10%, selling just 388,618 units this year, but staying firmly in the top five. It’s still the top selling mid-size car in the US, with the Corolla in fourth place establishing Toyota as the most popular carmaker among US buyers for 2016.
Toyota dropped the archaic meter cluster in the base LE trims for 2016, adding 7-inch touchscreen with Entune Audio Plus. Other improvements, like an onboard navigation system, simply help to bring the car into the modern age.
Toyota Corolla
Toyota sold 378,483 Toyota Corollas in 2016, roughly on par with the brand’s sales numbers in 2015.
The 2016 Corolla was the last of the 11th Generation, so other than a few updates to the infotainment system you didn’t see a lot of changes for this model year. 2014 saw a visual redesign and the addition of one-speed CVT, 2017 would see a comprehensive redesign for the new generation, but 2016 didn’t see many updates.
Honda Civic
Honda fell out of the top five in 2015, and the Honda Civic‘s 9.4% jump in sales didn’t quite land them back in the top half of the list, moving 366,927 units by year’s end.
2016 saw a total redesign for the Honda Civic. The sedan is a good four inches longer than the 2015 sedan, the rear end is all new, the roofline is a little sleeker, there are some new tail lights, and the whole design just looks a bit more contemporary. The center control stack has also been given a streamlined, modernized redesign.
Honda CR-V
The Honda CR-V sold 357,335 units by year-end, a modest but respectable 3.4% bump over the year prior. A solid sales year if a bit lackluster, owing perhaps to a lack of exciting new features.
Honda didn’t make any major noticeable changes to the CR-V for 2016. The automaker gave the 2017 edition a total overhaul with redesigned body, interior features, and plenty of new stuff under the hood. The 2016 model is sort of a placeholder in the design evolution of the nameplate.
Toyota RAV4
The Toyota RAV4 climbs the charts to the #8 spot for 2016, selling 352,154 units, an 11.6% bump over 2015. If the iconic SUV was just holding on in the top ten for 2015, it’s found its footing in 2016.
For 2016, the Toyota RAV4 saw a substantial exterior redesign. The SUV was given more of an SUV appearance, rather than the minivan-ish look the vehicle had in 2016. The edges are a little sharper, the front end is a little more aggressive, and the overall appearance is just a bit more rugged, a bit more macho.
Honda Accord
Honda sold 345,225 Accords in 2016, about on par with the nameplate’s 2015 sales numbers.
Honda gave the 2016 Accord a bolder front end. The grille, headlights, and bumper in particular were given a whole new look. Onboard, you’ve got a handful of tech tweaks, like faster Android Auto response time, to improve performance, but nothing here reinvents the wheel.
Nissan Rogue
The Nissan Rogue brings up the rear, knocking the Fusion out of the top ten and selling 329,904 units, a solid 14.9% jump over Nissan’s 2015 sales for the nameplate.
If you’re looking for one key change to differentiate the 2015 Nissan Rogue and the 2016 edition, that’s gonna be the foot-activated power liftgate. You slide your foot under the car and the trunk pops open. Fairly common now, but this was a big deal in 2016, and a pretty cool feature to have in a compact crossover SUV.
