by Matt Konkle
Torque Editor-in-Chief
Rocked by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, shuttered showrooms and limited manufacturing capability, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Wednesday released its second quarter sales figures for 2020 that showed a 39% drop compared to the same time last year.
However, the automaker was quick to point out that retail sales did rebound in May and June and were ‘stronger than expected’ against dismal April numbers. The company also indicated it has built up solid fleet demand as it focused on filling retail orders first during the quarter.
"This quarter demonstrated the resilience of the U.S. consumer," said FCA Head of U.S. Sales Jeff Kommor. "Retail sales have been rebounding since April as the reopening of the economy, steady gas prices and access to low interest loans spur people to buy. Our fleet volume remained low during the quarter as we prioritized vehicle deliveries to retail customers. As a result, we have built a strong fleet order book, which we will fulfill over the coming months."
The entire auto industry shut down manufacturing for much of the quarter, which possibly limited availability of many popular vehicles. Showrooms across the country also were shuttered under stay-home orders—forcing customers to wait as dealers ramped up alternative sales methods.
Not even the usual bright spots in Jeep Wrangler, Grand Cherokee and Ram Trucks were able to pull sales numbers from the quarterly nosedive as Wrangler tumbled 16%, Grand Cherokee 29% and Ram 35%.
One bright spot for Jeep was its Gladiator truck performance during the quarter. The Gladiator sold 19,568 total units in April, May and June that marked a 28% jump against first quarter results.
Overall, Jeep fell 27% for the quarter and is now 21% behind last year’s pace. Across the lineup for FCA, Ram dropped 35%; Chrysler fell 58%; Dodge fell 63%; Fiat was off 54% and Alfa Romeo declined 21%.
Auto consultants J.D. Power and LMC Automotive estimate U.S. vehicle sales fell about 25% to 1.09 million units in June, slowing from an over 40% plunge in April and a 29% decline in May.
FCA did highlight the evolving performance of its new Online Retail Experience, which allows customers to completely purchase a vehicle without having to wait for a showroom to open or needing an appointment. FCA says about 20 percent of new sales leads now come from online retailing compared with about 1 percent last year at this time.
“ORE is another tool dealers can now use to reach those consumers who like shopping from their home computer," Kommor said.
