My quick take: Retail sales (for the most part held in ok,) but the impact of reduced fleet (particularly out of GM and Ford) dragged on the “top line” a bit more than I think people were initially expecting. 

It also seemed like the foreign automakers and Chrysler were more aggressive with pricing than GM or Ford.  At least GM was pretty public that they “dialed back” incentives.  While Chrysler emphasized incentive packages of low rate financing and $5k back to help their dealers. They are also expanding an instant value coupon to a number of vehicles that seemed to “resonate well” in January.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.  ...

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