FCA Canada sales down by 18%

FCA Canada reported that they sold 26,354 vehicles in the first quarter, a drop of 18% from the first quarter of 2024, despite a brave performance by Chrysler itself.

The main shortfalls were at the volume brands, Ram and Jeep. Full-size Ram trucks fell by 38%, from 15,960 to 9,903; the Ram pickup and chassis cab series still outsells Jeep as a whole, even if you throw in another marque. ProMaster van sales did rise, though, from 484 to 1,756. Overall, Ram fell by 29%.

At Jeep, the Compass gained slightly, from 2,198 to 2,327 (6%), coming very close to Grand Cherokee sales. Jeep’s sales leader is still the Wrangler, though it fell by 23% to 2,821. The Grand Cherokee was the second best selling Jeep, down 29% to 2,341. The Gladiator had a punishing month, falling by 59% to 283; the Wagoneer fell by 59% to 215, but was joined by the Grand Wagoneer with another 142 sales (down just 7%). Finally, the new Wagoneer S debuted with 205 sales across the country, a late arrival with a promising start. A few leftover Cherokees and Renegades changed hands as well.

At Dodge, the leftovers didn’t really compete with the new cars: they sold 51 old Chargers and 23 old Challengers, as well as 168 new Chargers. The Hornet saw a 35% sales uptick as customers responded to price drops, ending at 551. The Durango actually rose in sales by 41%, to 2,051. Overall, Dodge was down by just 5%.

Chrysler sold 22 leftover 300s. The Grand Caravan was good for 1,417 sales (up from 609) and the Pacifica added 1,126 (up 44%), so that Chrysler itself was up by 69% and finished at 2,565, coming as close to Dodge as it’s ever likely to.

Finally, Fiat sold 8 leftover 500Xs and 749 new 500Es; the 500E is new to Canada. That meant that Fiat’s sales rose by 12517%, since its 757 sales can be compared to just 6 from Q1 2024. Alfa Romeo had no such luck, with its sales falling by 25%—they sold, across five provinces and some territories and native nations, and three months, 21 Giulias, 71 Stelvios, and 74 Tonales, for a total of 166 cars.

FCA Canada did not report any breakdowns of fleet and retail sales. FCA US reported plummeting fleet sales, possibly due mainly to reduced government purchases (the company did not say), while the story in Canada is something of a mystery.

Many Canadians are boycotting American goods, but Canadian-built minivans appear to be an exception. If tariffs are placed on American cars in retaliation for today’s tariffs, which in theory are going to be going into effect tomorrow, the minivans, Compass, Wagoneer S, Charger, Fiats and Alfa Romeos, Ram Heavy Duty, and ProMaster will all be exempt as they are already made in Canada, Mexico, or Europe. The company may also import the new Compass from Europe to Canada until or unless it builds them in Brampton.

David Zatz

David Zatz started what was to become the world’s biggest, most comprehensive Mopar site in 1994 as he pursued a career in organizational research and change. After a chemo-induced break, during which he wrote car books covering Vipers, minivans, and Jeeps, he returned with Patrick Rall to create StellPower.com for daily news, and to set up MoTales for mo’ tales.

David Zatz has around 30 years of experience in covering Chrysler/Mopar news and history, and most recently wrote Century of Chrysler, a 100-year retrospective on the Chrysler marque.