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March Marks Low Sales Month For Most Major Auto Companies

Spring has sprung, and the demand for cars is low as some major auto manufacturers reported sales drops this past March, including Fiat Chrysler (FCA), General Motors (GM), Nissan, and Toyota.

Autonews advised that GM is down just over eight percent, still looking for its first gain of the year, while Mazda dropped 19% last month. Nissan also was down just over seven percent, while the FCA (US) decreased by just over seven percent as well, experiencing another (straight) month of decline after 11 months of back-to-back gains. Toyota also dropped for the fifth consecutive month this past March when it came to sales.

It seems that only Honda (US) was able to manage an increase, as well as some other companies experiencing wins this past month.

The initial numbers seem to indicate another decline for the industry this year, as it struggles to get back on track and see yearly sales that topped 17 million, since 2014. It is clear that 2019 has already been a tough one for auto manufacturers’, with many experiencing a terrible first quarter.

While pickups remained strong, FCA felt the decease this month thanks to the slow-moving minivan, car, and Jeep stocks. Sales increased by 15% for Rams, helped by the new RAM pickup and its incentives; however, Dodge deliveries fell by 5.7%; Chrysler decreased at 38%; and Fiat at 45%. FCA’s top selling brand, Jeep, which has recorded three consecutive months of decline, fell once again at 11%.

March didn’t look good at Toyota either, with 13% decline in cars, and sales fell by just over five percent. Silver lining was that there was a small rise in Toyota trucks at just over three percent, and an increase of 8.2% at Lexus.

Nissan had decreases within both their truck and car numbers, with a 5.3% fall on deliveries for the Nissan brand, and 23% for Infiniti.

On to GM, it reported that first-quarter sales in the United States decreased by seven percent, with an 8.7% decrease at Buick; 7.8% downfall at Chevrolet; 4.4% for GMC; and two percent at Cadillac. It’s important to note that the company does not release monthly sales results for the U.S. GM stated car sales decreased by 21% in the first quarter, with SUVs, pickups, and crossovers marking over 80 percent of the mix.

In happier auto March sales news, American Honda saw sales increase by just over six percent at Acura and just over four percent at Honda. Meanwhile Volkswagen touted a 14% gain on strength of a 20% rise in crossover deliveries, which had Atlas and Tiguan sales at the forefront. Jetta’s sales increased by 65%, which had the company’s car volume raised to eight percent.

Mitsubishi boasted its best sales month since March 2004 as Outlander and Outlander Sport deliveries, as well as Eclipse Cross increased to a 37% gain for the company.

While there are some auto companies experiencing some increases in 2019, overall, the industry is hurting so far this year. Here’s hoping spring can inspire drivers to switch things up when it comes to their vehicles.

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