Fiat Sales in America

"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked) 09/06/2017 at 19:15 • Filed to: None

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Fun fact, the 2nd gen Chrysler 200 sold more in its worst (and last) full year on the market than the entire Fiat brand has in its best year since its relaunch in the US.

Chrysler 200: 57,294 (2016)

Fiat brand: 46,121 (2014)

And, yet, the 200 has been axed and Fiat still lives. According to TTAC, the 500L has not sold even a single example in 3 out of 8 months this year up in Canada, and is on track to finish the year with around 1,200 sales in the US, however FCA has confirmed that it will continue to be sold for the 2018 model year.

I don’t want to rush to judgement before all the facts are in, but I am really starting to question Sergio Marchionne’s judgement in certain areas.

E90M3 > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 19:26

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Chrysler 200: 57,294 (2016)

57,290 to rental car companies.

not for canada - australian in disguise > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 19:29

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I’ve seen an entirety of 1 500X in the wild. It’s been out for like a year and a half, maybe more.

CB > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 19:30

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I found a basically new, one year old 500L with about 10k kilometres on it for about $11k CAD. There isn’t much of a market for them, as you can tell.

Maxima Speed > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 19:43

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I love those things. I start salivating whenever I see one. Come to think of it I see them all the time, so maybe there’s another reason for my drooling? 

ranwhenparked > E90M3 09/06/2017 at 19:44

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I’m sure at least a few dozen went to individuals.

ranwhenparked > not for canada - australian in disguise 09/06/2017 at 19:45

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And that’s the one you’d expect Americans to possibly want.

ranwhenparked > Maxima Speed 09/06/2017 at 19:51

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Not sure, but you might want to get that checked out, just to play safe.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 20:03

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The big problem with the Fiat brand is their shit is WAY OVERPRICED... especially in Canada.

That was my impression when I last looked at what they had and came away thinking that for the same money, I can get one of the BMW Minis that are newer designs, have more power/performance and better brand recognition for about the same or just a little more money.

The have to cut the MSRPs by CAD$2000 to $4000 on everything they sell, except for the 124 Spyder.

Either that or make more features standard. For example on the Fiat 500... I like the 500... but I won’t pay a base MSRP of over CAD$16,000 for something that only has 101HP and no A/C. For that money, either A/C or the 135HP turbo engine should be standard at the very least.

And the 500L has a base MSRP of over CAD$25,000... INSANE. I’ll take an old Dodge Grand Caravan CVP that’s currently selling for $1000 less.

I’m sure the vehicles under the Fiat brand would sell if they were priced to compete with small cars from Ford and GM. But instead, they’re priced as if they compete with the BMW Mini... and they don’t do that well at all.

They need a complete rethink with how they market the Fiat brand in North America.

not for canada - australian in disguise > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 09/06/2017 at 20:12

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There’s a dealership near me charging $34,000 for a 500L. That’s a very steep price for a car that’s esentially a Fiat Punto.

ranwhenparked > not for canada - australian in disguise 09/06/2017 at 20:21

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I have to assume it must have some sort of sentimental value for the dealer principal, because he clearly has no interest in selling it.

I have another burner, try to guess it! > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 20:39

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Hot take: I like the 200 as a non-enthusiast’s car and it’s massively underrated.

ranwhenparked > I have another burner, try to guess it! 09/06/2017 at 20:45

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It seemed like a decent enough car, and the fact that you could get a 295hp Pentastar was worth mentioning.

But, the intermediate car market is declining, and Chrysler’s prior negative baggage didn’t help (and was only made worse by carrying over the model name), and the backseat was too cramped.

dogisbadob > ranwhenparked 09/06/2017 at 21:03

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should’ve just captive imported them as Dodge and Chrysler

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > not for canada - australian in disguise 09/06/2017 at 21:29

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I really think that if they lowered the 5o0's price to be reasonable and brought the FIAT Panda over here to sell to compete with the likes off the Kia Soul, etc, they would do OK...especially if they offered the Panda Cross and Panda 4x4 models as well.

not for canada - australian in disguise > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 09/06/2017 at 21:59

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I think a good Fiat lineup would be;

Panda - Fiesta/Soul/Micra/Spark/Yaris/Fit competitor

500 - Mini competitor

Tipo - Focus/Forte/Sentra/Cruze/Corolla/Civic competitor

An midsize sedan - Fusion/Optima/Altima/Malibu/Camry/Accord competitor

Fullback (?) - Ranger/Santa Cruz/Frontier/Colorado/Tacoma/Ridgeline competitor

Panda 4X4 - Competes against, well, not really much. I guess the plastic cladded hatches like that Spark thing would compete against it. And maybe the Ecosport.

Tipo-based crossover (not the 500X) - Ecosport/Kicks/Qashqai/Trax/CH-R/HR-V competitor

Midsize sedan based crossover - Escape/Rogue/Equinox/RAV-4/CR-V competitor

And then they could have the 124 Spider, it’s pointless, but it’s harmless enough. Ditch the “name everything 500" gimmick because it prevents Fiat from selling any cars in North America. Fiat is simply too niche at the moment and it’s their own fault. They’ve brought a European volume brand here and turned it into Mini. Minis are nice, but they’re niche and they don’t sell a lot of cars.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > not for canada - australian in disguise 09/06/2017 at 22:42

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I completely agree - if I were suggesting a lineup, it would look much the same. I think the Tipo and the Panda could do well here if given the chance and priced appropriately!

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > E90M3 09/06/2017 at 22:55

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Burn.

Also, likely, truth.

duurtlang > not for canada - australian in disguise 09/07/2017 at 03:51

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Panda - Fiesta/Soul/Micra/Spark/Yaris/Fit competitor

That won’t work. The Panda is significantly smaller than those cars. Cheaper too. The Panda is no subcompact, it’s a citycar. Just like the 500, which won’t directly compete with a Mini either because it’s so much smaller.

duurtlang > ranwhenparked 09/07/2017 at 03:59

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The thing is, Fiat builds those cars anyway and they’ve been federalized already so it doesn’t cost that much to continue selling them in North America. The 200 is North America-only as far as I know. My point being: globally speaking the Fiat 500 (the hatch) easily outsells the Chrysler. Fiat, the former volume brand which has become little more than a 500 peddler in Europe too, sold 750k cars in Europe alone in 2016. That’s only 7 times more than (from a European perspective) obscure niche brand Jeep.

ranwhenparked > duurtlang 09/07/2017 at 07:04

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They are still amortizing the cost of federalization, plus tooling up the plant in Mexico, plus the expenses of running a US sales organization, plus the showroom upgrades they forced dealers to make to carry Fiat.

Amoore100 > ranwhenparked 09/23/2017 at 00:19

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All in Tucson, Arizona. Maybe it’s a inland America thing, in the Bay Area every. single. one. was a rental—here there’s plenty with dealer stickers, U of A badges, and fully equipped models (i.e. clearly not ex-rental). I must say, I’ve always liked how they’ve looked and, given a warranty and a discounted price, I can’t blame people for buying them.

I mean, it is just our version of the Peugeot 508 , and I love the 508.

cluelessk > ranwhenparked 10/02/2017 at 20:21

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Delete. Didn’t see the date.

cluelessk > ranwhenparked 10/02/2017 at 20:22

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Talking about forced showroom upgrades. The Toyota dealer locally had to change their sign for one with Scion last year.