Photo: Fiat
Fiat Chrysler has its good parts and bad parts. Today we’ll talk about one of the bad parts, namely Fiat in North America. As you found out from the headline, things aren’t rosy at the present moment, with dealers quoting 161 days of on-hand supply.
According to The Truth About Cars, “Fiat doesn’t have to ship another car to dealers until September 20th [2018] and they’ll be just fine.” That’s how bad business is, but what did you expect considering that sales are down 44%?
Mercedes-Benz and BMW have the tightest inventory in the United States at 47 days. Subaru, Mazda, and Nissan, on the other hand, quote 49, 59, and 60 days. For greater reference, the automotive industry had 4,021,400 unsold cars and light trucks as of March 1st, 2018, representing a 74-day supply.
The cited publication goes even further with the woes of Fiat in the U.S., claiming that “there’s less than $200 of room between the invoice price and sticker.” In other words, every single model in the Fiat lineup is a hard sell with little return for the dealer in terms of profit. “All of the Fiats on this lot were 2017 model year because the general manager [of the dealer] had no interest in ordering any 2018 inventory.” Could it get any worse?
Although we have a soft spot for the 500, but the 500 as we know it started production in 2007 on the Fiat Mini platform, which dates back to the Panda Mk2 from 2003! The 500X crossover gives the impression of a wannabe Jeep Renegade, and the 500L people carrier, on the other, is plain awful.
As a side note, even Alfa Romeo outsells Fiat in the United States. FCA might have thought that the 500 lineup has chances of moving cars in this part of the world after Dodge and Chrysler discontinued the Dart and 200, but wishful thinking can only go so far. The novelty wore off, and Fiat should do something about it if it doesn’t want to exit the U.S. once again.
Mercedes-Benz and BMW have the tightest inventory in the United States at 47 days. Subaru, Mazda, and Nissan, on the other hand, quote 49, 59, and 60 days. For greater reference, the automotive industry had 4,021,400 unsold cars and light trucks as of March 1st, 2018, representing a 74-day supply.
The cited publication goes even further with the woes of Fiat in the U.S., claiming that “there’s less than $200 of room between the invoice price and sticker.” In other words, every single model in the Fiat lineup is a hard sell with little return for the dealer in terms of profit. “All of the Fiats on this lot were 2017 model year because the general manager [of the dealer] had no interest in ordering any 2018 inventory.” Could it get any worse?
Although we have a soft spot for the 500, but the 500 as we know it started production in 2007 on the Fiat Mini platform, which dates back to the Panda Mk2 from 2003! The 500X crossover gives the impression of a wannabe Jeep Renegade, and the 500L people carrier, on the other, is plain awful.
As a side note, even Alfa Romeo outsells Fiat in the United States. FCA might have thought that the 500 lineup has chances of moving cars in this part of the world after Dodge and Chrysler discontinued the Dart and 200, but wishful thinking can only go so far. The novelty wore off, and Fiat should do something about it if it doesn’t want to exit the U.S. once again.
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