Even though Chrysler Group emerged from bankruptcy early last month, its June sales results continued the trend that ultimately forced the liquidation of the Old Chrysler organization. The ongoing shift of buyers away from trucks and truck-derived vehicles has left it on the wrong side of the supply curve.

Overall in June, Chrysler Group sales declined to 68,297 vehicles, a decrease of 42% compared with June 2008, while the market is down on average 37%. It was the largest decline among the major automakers.

Particularly worrisome is continuing weakness in car sales. They are off 58% year-to-date, compared to a 40% drop in truck sales, which is also troubling. From a volume point of view, Chrysler Group is really a two-trick pony — minivans, the Town & Country and Caravan, and the Ram pick-up truck.

The groups’ passenger car lineup is severely challenged to attract customers and show growth in the most popular areas of the market that — with the exception of GM and Ford full-size pickup trucks — is comprised entirely of mid-size to sub-compact car or car-based offerings.

Take a look at the Top Ten selling car models for June.  

The Top Ten volume comes from such formidable, well-established models as the Toyota Camry and Corolla, Honda Civic and Accord, Nissan Altima, and to a lesser extent, the Ford Fusion and Escape, and the Chevrolet Impala. Chrysler just doesn’t play in this league.

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Not only are these vehicles aimed at the heart of the market, hence their appearance on the chart, but they are supported with advertising and promotional funds, customer financing that includes leasing, and dealership groups that are proven at moving metal.

What Fiat brings to the new company are small cars and small engine technology, but that is at least a year out. And Fiat’s previous forays into the U.S. market flopped. But Fiat remains in the future. Right now Chrysler has to sell what it has and compete successfully against the best opposing car lineup in history.

The cars that Chrysler and Dodge have on hand are not major league entries. For the moment, the newly launched Dodge Challenger, a throw back to the old days of gas guzzling muscle cars, is enjoying success. Challenger is up 34% compared with June 2008, but we’re talking 15,000 units year-to-date, which wouldn’t doesn’t even qualify it for the Top Ten, if  Challenger sold that many in a month.

The car models at the heart of the market (some certified as trucks to meet EPA standards, which allows the company to sell less efficient, larger trucks), Chrysler Sebring , PT Cruiser, and Dodge Avenger, Caliber, Challenger and Journey are selling at roughly one-tenth the rate of the Top Ten.

Jeep as a brand is interesting, but as a volume business that consistently makes money, Jeep needs to eliminate the badge-engineered models, which Chrysler says it is eventually going to do, and get the volumes up on three core models — Grand Cherokee, Liberty and Wrangler. Here there’s hope. Fiat says it is interested in pursuing a major export push for the brand. We’ll see.

Another one of the problems inhibiting recovery is the Group’s unsold inventory of vehicles. Even though Chrysler took the drastic step of shutting down all of its manufacturing facilities at the beginning of May, and only opened eight of them at the very end of June, the company finished the month with 195,272 units in inventory, representing a 71 day supply in an industry that in — better times — thought 60 days as adequate. And the plants go down  again for two weeks in  July. (It is true that if the seasonally adjusted annual selling rate ever returns to more than the 10 million units, the supply numbers can quickly change, as they are based on the selling rate, but I wouldn’t bet on this happening for the balance of 2009.)  Closed plants produce losses.

Fasten your seat belt; it’s going to be a long ride on the road to recovery,  if current marketplace dynamics hold.