Stalling Corvette

Corvette sales in 2009 were the worst for the nameplate since 1961, according to Edmunds.com.

The leading auto industry watcher says sports car sales were down 17.8% in 2009, but the industry overall was down 21.2%. Edmunds.com senior analyst Jessica Caldwell said the new Chevy Camaro helped keep the segment from further decline.

“Over 60,000 Camaros were sold last year, and many of the buyers are unlikely to have chosen another sports car in its place had it not been on the market,” Caldwell noted.

The Corvette, which slid 48.3%, was the third best selling sports car in 2008, consuming about 6.6% of the categories’ market share. As recently as 2006, Chevrolet sold more than two-and-a-half times as many Corvettes — 36,518 — as it did last year.

OTHER SPORTS CARS
• The Porsche 911 dropped 17.8% last year, while Porsche’s Boxster and Cayman were off 36% and 44%, respectively, in 2009.

• The Audi TT — a comparatively new design — fell 56.9% last year to just 1,935 sales for the year. Even sales for Audi R8, launched in 2008 and revered for being a relative bargain, dropped by 22.3%.

• At Mercedes, sales for the SLK plunged 48.1% to 2,566, and sales for the pricey SL were off 26.3%.

• The Dodge Viper, which the Chrysler Group LLC announced would cease production later this year, fell 58.9% last year and just 482 were sold.