Detroit Three Coping Better with High Gasoline Prices

Chrysler, Ford and General Motors are gaining market share in an period of high and volatile gasoline prices a major reversal of their past performance, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

The Fed notes that historically U.S. domestic carmakers fared poorly when fuel prices rose because of their heavy reliance on less efficient SUVs, minivans and pickup trucks. Their European and Asian rivals, which had developed small, fuel-sipping cars for their home markers, did much better when gasoline prices spiked.

The report demonstrates that the Detroit Three's small and midsize cars gained share during two recent periods of high gasoline prices: September 2010-May 2011 and February-April 2012. Those companies had surrendered share in October 2007-July 2008, when gasoline prices surged 45% to $4.11 per gallon.

The report concludes that better and more fuel-efficient cars from Detroit account for the improvement in the latter two time spans.