Increases for Jeep (61%), Lancia (13.2%) and Fiat (4.2%)
The Fiat 500 and Panda were once again the two top-selling vehicles in the European A segment, with a combined share of 28.7% for the year to date
October 17, 2014 , London, UK – The European auto market (EU28+EFTA) continued its upward trend in September with new passenger car registrations up 6.1% to nearly 1,270,000. For the nine months year-to-date, registrations were up 5.8% to 9,907,000.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles also posted an increase in September, with sales up 6% to nearly 69,000 vehicles and market share in line with the same period in 2013 at 5.4%. The Group achieved sales gains in all major European markets, with Italy up 4.7%, Germany 8.7%, France 2.9%, the UK 4.7% and Spain 27.9%.
For the year to date, FCA sales totaled more than 588,000 vehicles (+2.6% year-over-year) and market share was 20 basis points lower at 5.9%.
Fiat brand posted September sales of nearly 53,000 vehicles, up 4.2% year-over-year, with market share at 4.1% (-10 bps).
For the year to date, brand sales totaled nearly 455,000 vehicles (+2.2% year-over-year) and market share was 4.6% (-20 bps).
The brand registered September sales increases in each of the five major European markets. In Spain, where the overall market was up 26%, Fiat brand sales were up 34.2% over September 2013. Sales were also up 4.4% in Germany, 3.2% in France and 4.5% in the UK.
The 500 and Panda were once again the two most popular cars in the European A segment with combined shares of 25.9% in September and 28.7% for the year to date. In the UK, the 500 achieved an all-time record with more than 9,000 units sold.
The 500L registered a 17.8% European segment share in September and a 22.3% share for the nine months year to date. Combined sales for the 500 family were up 15.1% year-over-year for the month of September and 22.1% for the year to date.
The 500 led the European A segment in September followed by the Panda which, with more than 12,000 vehicles sold, accounted for nearly 10% of segment sales. The new Cross version proved popular with customers during the open door weekend held on 27-28 September.
Lancia/Chrysler posted September sales of nearly 6,800 vehicles (+13.2%) and market share was in line with the prior year at 0.5%. Brand sales were up 26.9% in Italy and 1.7% in France.
For the year to date, brand sales were down 2.4% to just under 56,000 vehicles, with share unchanged at 0.6%.
Sales of the brand’s number one model, the Ypsilon, were up 33.3% over September a year ago driven in large part by the success of the recently launched ELLE version. The Ypsilon was the best selling B-segment vehicle in Italy for the month of September.
Alfa Romeo posted September sales of just over 5,100 vehicles (-13.2%) with market share at 0.4%. The brand achieved particularly positive performance in Spain and Switzerland with year-over-year sales increases of 7% and 9%, respectively.
For the year to date, brand sales totaled just over 45,500 vehicles (-10.4%) and market share was in line with the same period in 2013 at 0.5%.
Sales of the MiTo were up a full 8% for the year to date in Italy.
Jeep sales totaled more than 3,600 vehicles in September (+61%) with market share up 10 basis points to 0.3%.
The brand posted September sales increases well above the average in all of the major European markets. Sales were up 44.7% in Italy, 48.9% in Germany, 27.2% in France, 133.7% in the UK and 31.6% in Spain.
For the year to date, Jeep brand sales were up nearly 47% to more than 25,000 vehicles and market share was up 10 basis points to 0.3%. By major market, sales were up 40.1% in Italy, 40.6% in Germany, 38.3% in France, 95.1% in the UK and 8.9% in Spain.
The Grand Cherokee, the brand’s flagship model, continued its strong sales momentum with year-to-date sales up 44.2%. The Wrangler posted a 23% sales increase in September. The recent launches of the Cherokee and Renegade are expected to contribute to further sales increases in the coming months.
For Ferrari and Maserati, sales totaled 654 vehicles in September and 6,633 for the year to date.