It was a tough year for the Fiat Brand. Fiat sales in North America (USA, Mexico, and Canada) totaled 26,104 units in 2018 compared to the 41,329 sold the previous year. Sales of all 500 and 124 models were down in all three countries.
The Fiat brand sold 15,521 cars in the US during 2018, 41 percent less compared to 26,492 sold in 2017.
Fiat sales in Mexico totaled 9,938, a 20 percent decrease over 12,498 units sold the previous year. It should be noted that Fiat Mexico also sells a variety of models besides the 500 and 500L. Sales in Mexico of the 500X and Spider were discontinued last year.
Fiat Canadian sales dropped 72 percent to 645 units from 2017's total of 2,359 cars.
One of the key reasons for these declines were the lack of availability of Fiat's iconic 500 hatch and Cabrio models, Fiat's traditional best selling models. Fiat shut down production of the 500 to retool for the updated 2018 model year which delayed cars getting out to the dealers until summer. This six-month delay severely impacted sales.*
Fiat USA Sales: 15,521
Fiat Brand Sales in Canada: 645
Fiat Brand Sales in Mexico: 9,938
Total: 26,104
Fiat 500 Sales
The conspicuous absence of the best selling 500 models had a significant impact on sales last year. The model breakdown in the US shows that there was a total of 5,370 Fiat 500 hatchback, Cabrios and Abarth sold in 2018. This number is down 58 percent compared to 2017's figure of 12,685 cars.
In Canada, there were 269 Fiat 500s sold in 2018 compared to 840 in 2016. Fiat 500 sales in Mexico amounted to 52 during 2018 versus 440 in 2017.
Fiat 500L Sales
Even though Fiat 500L sales in the US had been in positive territory the first part of the year, the model finished off 15 percent down for the year. Fiat 500L sales in the US for 2018 totaled 1,413, compared to 2017's figure of 1,664 cars.
Fiat sold 13 500L MPVs in Canada last year versus 42 sold in 2017. In Mexico, 52 500L's were sold last year versus 143 in 2017.
Fiat 500X Sales
Fiat 500X sales in the US totaled 5,223 last year, down 32% compared to 2017.
In Canada, Fiat sold only 79 500X crossovers, compared to the 856 total sold in 2017 - a 91 percent drop. Mexican sales of the 500X ended in 2018.
Fiat 124 Spider
US sales of the Spider totaled 3,516 units last year, compared to 4,416 in 2017, a 22% decline.
There were 284 Spiders sold in Canada in 2018, a 53 percent decline over the 601 sold the year before. Sales of the Spider were discontinued in Mexico.
Looking Forward
The 2019 model year brings more refinement and enhancements to the 500l, 500X and Spider model ranges. The 500X, in particular, has been given a refreshed design with an upmarket look, plus a more powerful engine. Because of their late introduction, the 500 hatch and Cabrio models remain the same for 2019 other than some color changes.
The 124 Spider model range gets some new colors and more flexibility when ordering and combining options. The 2019 124 Spider also offers increased content on the base Classica edition compared to 2018, plus new striping options.
*Fiat 500 production for the NAFTA region for the 2017 model year ended in Toluca, Mexico in August 2017. Production of 2018 models began after some delays late in the first quarter of the new year with cars arriving at dealers in earnest around June/August.
Fiat Brand Sales in the United States January through December 2018
| Fiat 500 | Current Month | Last Year | Vol Change | Current YTD | Last Year YTD | Vol Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 500 500L 500X 124 | 418 39 336 184 977 | 667 111 673 287 1,738 | -37% -65% -50% -36% -44% | 5370 1413 5223 3516 15,521 | 12685 1664 7665 4478 26492 | -58% -15% -32% -22% -41% |
| Nov 500 500L 500X 124 | 707 47 358 197 1,309 | 782 127 556 268 1,733 | -10% -63% -36% -26% -24% | 4952 1374 4887 3331 14,544 | 12018 1553 6992 4191 24754 | -59% -12% -30% -21% -41% |
| Oct 500 500L 500X 124 | 528 96 308 219 1,151 | 801 159 561 248 1,769 | -34% -40% -45% -12% -35% | 4245 1327 4529 3134 13,235 | 11236 1426 6436 3923 23021 | -82% -7% -30% -20% -43% |
| Sept 500 500L 500X 124 | 529 84 286 286 1,185 | 1016 209 638 343 2,206 | -48% -60% -55% -17% -46% | 3717 1231 4221 2915 12084 | 10435 1267 5875 3675 21252 | -64% -3% -28% -21% -43% |
| Aug 500 500L 500X 124 | 563 136 332 343 1,374 | 937 141 660 382 2,120 | -40% -4% -50% -10% -35% | 3188 1147 3935 2629 10,889 | 9419 1058 5237 3332 19046 | -66% 8% -25% -21% -43% |
| July 500 500L 500X 124 | 363 107 378 392 1,240 | 1026 171 597 450 2,244 | -65% -37% -37% -13% -45% | 2625 1011 3603 2286 9,525 | 8,482 917 4577 2950 16926 | -69% 10% -21% -23% -44% |
| June 500 500L 500X 124 | 354 157 514 401 1,426 | 995 184 553 510 2,242 | -64% -15% -7% -21% -36% | 2262 904 3225 1894 8,285 | 7,456 746 3980 2500 14682 | -70% 21% -19% -24% -44% |
| May 500 500L 500X 124 | 264 184 568 425 1,441 | 1240 163 703 564 2,670 | -79% 13% -19% -25% -46% | 1908 747 2711 1493 6,859 | 6,461 562 3427 1990 12440 | -70% 33% -21% -25% -45% |
| April 500 500L 500X 124 | 335 168 564 337 1,404 | 1201 115 758 465 2,539 | -72% 46% -26% -28% -45% | 1644 563 2143 1068 5,418 | 5,221 399 2724 1426 9770 | -69% 41% -21% -25% -45% |
| March 500 500L 500X 124 | 439 173 607 325 1,544 | 1671 106 726 419 2,922 | -74% 63% -16% -22% -47% | 1309 395 1579 731 4,014 | 4,020 284 1,966 961 7,231 | -67% 39% -20% -24% -44% |
| Feb 500 500L 500X 124 | 416 118 484 223 1,241 | 1131 72 640 302 2,145 | -63% 64% -24% -26% -42% | 870 222 972 406 2,470 | 2,349 178 1,240 542 4,309 | -63% 25% -22% -25% -43% |
| Jan 500 500L 500X 124 | 454 104 488 183 1,229 | 1218 106 606 240 2,164 | -63% -2% -19% -24% -43% | 454 104 488 183 1,229 | 1,218 106 600 240 2,164 | -63% -2% -19% -24% -43% |
Sources: FCA US LLC, Fiat Mexico, Fiat Canada
Images: FCA
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