Chrysler posts strong US, Canada salesby David Zatz on May 3, 2011 at 2:52 pm EDT Chrysler reported U.S. sales of 117,225 for April 2011, 22% more than April 2010 (95,703 units). Both retail car and truck sales were up; every Jeep and Ram model had a sales gain compared with April 2010 (Jeep in particular had a 65% increase). Chrysler Canada sales were 23,837, up 16% from April 2010. It was the 17th consecutive month of sales growth, and the second strongest April sales since 2002. Chrysler finished with a 70-day supply of inventory (304,168 units). Notable U.S. sales points include Jeep’s incredible performance; Compass had a 181% sales increase with the redesigned model; and the Grand Cherokee nearly doubled last April’s sales with a 189% gain; Patriot had a 93% increase and Liberty 39%, hardly noticeable against the others. Even Wrangler went up by 9%. Ram posted a 29% increase overall, with 1500, heavy duty, and chassis cab posting double-digit gains. That means more than most gains, since Ram is the company’s biggest seller, and a 29% gain means an extra 4,000 trucks moving out for the month; that’s more trucks than Dodge sold Challengers. Dodge posted a 14% increase, driven by the Avenger, which had a 26% sales increase over April 2010 and 27% over March 2011. The new Durango increased sales as well, but Nitro was the surprise with a 44% gain. The Chrysler 200 increased in sales as availability improved; it more than doubled sales of the Sebring. There were down sides as well; both minivans plummeted, with Town & Country dropping by 34% and Caravan dropping by 16%, possibly due to the changeover from 2010 to 2011, or from customer resistance to pricing changes. Chrysler 300 sales fell by 21%, Charger by 5%, and Challenger by 3%. Chrysler’s most popular cars in the US were, as always, the Ram, with 17,680 sales; Grand Cherokee, with 9,802; and Wrangler, with 9,051. Following those were the Town & Country and Caravan, with around 8,800 sales each (of note, the two combined roughly equal Ram sales); the Charger, with 8,485 cars moving out; and, for the first time in a long time, the Chrysler mid-sized sedan, the 200, with 8,274 sales. It easily beat the Avenger’s 7,577 sales. If they can keep up the pace, Chrysler could be a contender in the mid-sized realm again; but Chrysler is most likely considering this “a good start.” U.S. SALES, APRIL 2011 Vehicle April2011 April2010 Change YTD2011 YTD2010 Change FIAT BRAND 882 0 0% 1,382 0 0% 200 8,274 0 0% 18,154 0 0% Sebring 0 4,053 -100% 2,327 14,589 -84% 300 3,263 4,127 -21% 8,642 14,066 -39% PT Cruiser 0 838 -100% 1,283 2,904 -56% Aspen 0 1 -100% 0 28 -100% Town & Country 8,842 13,367 -34% 32,769 37,947 -14% CHRYSLER BRAND 20,379 22,386 -9% 63,175 69,534 -9% Compass 4,050 1,443 181% 11,443 6,376 79% Patriot 4,636 2,404 93% 17,843 10,040 78% Wrangler 9,051 8,327 9% 31,938 27,592 16% Liberty 4,845 3,490 39% 20,000 14,214 41% Grand Cherokee 9,802 3,393 189% 35,917 19,304 86% Commander 0 588 -100% 96 5,566 -98% JEEP BRAND 32,384 19,645 65% 117,237 83,092 41% Caliber 3,967 3,671 8% 13,574 11,372 19% Avenger 7,577 6,000 26% 19,325 15,669 23% Charger 8,485 8,944 -5% 22,796 27,652 -18% Challenger 3,617 3,713 -3% 13,359 10,752 24% Viper 10 19 -47% 94 87 8% Journey 4,598 4,475 3% 18,778 18,046 4% Caravan 8,793 10,435 -16% 36,721 31,872 15% Nitro 2,209 1,536 44% 8,264 5,745 44% Durango 5,064 2 n/a 13,386 34 n/a DODGE BRAND 44,320 38,795 14% 146,297 121,229 21% Dakota 1,580 1,192 33% 5,665 4,186 35% Ram P/U 17,680 13,665 29% 70,419 51,707 36% Sprinter 0 20 -100% 0 170 -100% RAM BRAND 19,260 14,877 29% 76,084 56,063 36% TOTAL DODGE 63,580 53,672 18% 222,381 177,292 25% TOTAL CHRYSLER 117,225 95,703 22% 404,175 329,918 23% TOTAL CAR 36,075 30,527 18% 99,653 94,187 6% TOTAL TRUCK 81,150 65,176 25% 304,522 235,731 29% Share me!RedditFacebookTwitterMorePrintTumblrLinkedInGoogle