Fiat Chrysler's Bold Bet on SUVs Seems to Be Paying Off

John Rosevear, The Motley Fool

Updated Wed, Apr 4, 2018, 7:35 PM

Much of that demand came from retail buyers. An 11% retail sales gain was enough to push Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) past Ford Motor Company's (NYSE: F) retail sales total for only the second time since 2010. Ford's U.S. sales rose 3.4% in March; Detroit rival General Motors' (NYSE: GM) rose 15.7%.

Year to date, FCA's sales in the U.S. are up 0.8% through March.

A red 2018 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon on a rocky wilderness trail.

Big demand for the all-new 2018 Jeep Wrangler helped the iconic SUV brand to a huge sales gain in March. Image source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

High and low points from FCA's March sales results

The high points have to start with FCA's powerhouse Jeep SUV brand, which had a tremendous month led by its all-new Wrangler and revamped Cherokee.

Jeep sales rose 45% to 98,382 vehicles, its best monthly result ever.
Sales of Jeep's iconic Wrangler rose 70% to 27,829 vehicles, its best result ever.
Sales of the Jeep Cherokee rose 63% to 23,764. That wasn't quite its best result ever, but it's a high number. It appears that the Cherokee's new assembly line is now running at full speed.
Sales of the stylish Chrysler Pacifica minivan rose 40% to 13,086.
In what must be a sign of spring, sales of the Dodge Challenger muscle coupe rose 31% to 8,150.
Alfa Romeo sold 2,576 vehicles, with the new Stelvio SUV nearly equaling the Giulia sedan's total sales.

The low points:

Sales of the Ram full-size pickup line fell 11% to 41,307. Although it's never good to see a decline when Ford and GM post gains, it's not quite as bad as it looks: FCA's all-new 2019 Ram just began shipping in the second half of March.
Both of FCA's Ram ProMaster commercial-van models posted double-digit sales declines.
Sales of the well-regarded three-row Dodge Durango crossover SUV fell 10%, and sales of its Jeep Grand Cherokee sibling declined 4%. The Grand Cherokee was the only Jeep model to post a sales decline in March.
Fiat sales fell 47% to just 1,544 vehicles. The Italian brand's quirky novelty appears to have faded for U.S. buyers.

A yellow 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody is shown powersliding around a racetrack with a cloud of tire smoke behind.

It must be spring: Dodge Challenger sales rose 31% in March. Image source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

The upshot: Marchionne's plan is working, for now

CEO Sergio Marchionne was ahead of the industry in making a bold bet on SUV sales when he announced in early 2016 that the company would discontinue production of its two mass-market sedans, the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200. Its only remaining car models are niche products with (in theory, at least) above-average profit potential: the little Fiat 500, the brawny Dodge Charger and Challenger, and the Charger's upscale Chrysler 300 sibling.