Click to Enlarge.
FCA said overall sales were 565,034 vehicles for the three-month period covering July, August and September. US retail sales accounted for 438,649 vehicles, while fleet accounted for 22% of total sales. Fleet sales, on a year-to-date basis, accounted for 25% of overall sales.
The announcement came shortly after the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Michigan-based automaker FCA US LLC, and its parent company, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V., for misleading investors about the number of new vehicles sold each month to customers in the United States. FCA US and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles have agreed to pay $40 million to settle the charges. Translation: FCA bought its way out of all legal troubles with the SEC here for a mere $40 million.
According to the SEC’s order, between 2012 and 2016, FCA US issued monthly press releases falsely reporting new vehicle sales and falsely touting a “streak” of uninterrupted monthly year-over-year sales growth. However, the growth streak ended in September 2013. (FCA is New Name for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles)
Nonetheless FCA touted three sales records for the third quarter as buyer bought or leased premium technology and interior upgrades on heavy-duty trucks. The Jeep Wrangler had a record quarter because of new “limited-edition” models. Dodge Challenger reported a record third quarter, while the Charger had its highest level of third-quarter sales in 13 years. Over the past decade, Challenger and Charger sales have increased more than 60% as FCA returned to the hot rod market.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
FCA US Q3 Sales Flat at 565,000
Click to Enlarge.
FCA said overall sales were 565,034 vehicles for the three-month period covering July, August and September. US retail sales accounted for 438,649 vehicles, while fleet accounted for 22% of total sales. Fleet sales, on a year-to-date basis, accounted for 25% of overall sales.
The announcement came shortly after the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Michigan-based automaker FCA US LLC, and its parent company, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V., for misleading investors about the number of new vehicles sold each month to customers in the United States. FCA US and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles have agreed to pay $40 million to settle the charges. Translation: FCA bought its way out of all legal troubles with the SEC here for a mere $40 million.
According to the SEC’s order, between 2012 and 2016, FCA US issued monthly press releases falsely reporting new vehicle sales and falsely touting a “streak” of uninterrupted monthly year-over-year sales growth. However, the growth streak ended in September 2013. (FCA is New Name for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles)
Nonetheless FCA touted three sales records for the third quarter as buyer bought or leased premium technology and interior upgrades on heavy-duty trucks. The Jeep Wrangler had a record quarter because of new “limited-edition” models. Dodge Challenger reported a record third quarter, while the Charger had its highest level of third-quarter sales in 13 years. Over the past decade, Challenger and Charger sales have increased more than 60% as FCA returned to the hot rod market.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.