Sport Utility Vehicles Lead Chrysler's March Sales, Capping Strong Quarter
1 April 1998
Sport Utility Vehicles Lead Chrysler's March Sales, Capping Strong Quarter
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., April 1 -- Chrysler Corporation
posted U.S. sales of 578,300 vehicles in the first three months of
1998, its second best first quarter in the Company's history, and a one
percent increase over last year. The record first quarter was set in 1996.
In March, strong and steady demand for sport utility vehicles
contributed to total monthly sales of 206,677 units, down two percent from
the same period a year ago of 210,515 vehicles.
Total sport utility vehicle sales totaled 49,157 for the month, a
30 percent increase over the same period a year ago, due primarily to the
popularity of the Jeep(R) Cherokee, up 18 percent, and the recently introduced
Dodge Durango. This volume surpasses the 1994 record of 40,845 sport utility
vehicles sold during the same period.
Total truck sales of 145,021 units represents the fifth consecutive
monthly record and is up six percent compared to March 1997. More Dodge
trucks were sold in March (89,283 units) than in any monthly period ever.
"We continue to be impressed by the strong demand for our trucks and sport
utility vehicles," said James P. Holden, Executive Vice President of Sales and
Marketing. "In particular, the Dodge Durango has proven itself to be a
runaway hit and the Dodge Dakota pickup continues to sell in double-digit rate
increases year-to-year."
Passenger car sales (61,656 units) for March were down 17 percent from the
same period a year ago. However, Chrysler's compact cars set a seventh
consecutive monthly record of 19,042, surpassing the 1996 record of 18,526
units. Specifically, Dodge Stratus posted record sales of 10,363 units, up
26 percent over last year and Chrysler Cirrus achieved sales of 3,214 units, a
year-to-year increase of 38 percent.
"We expect our passenger car sales to improve as we introduce the new
Chrysler 300M and LHS models," said Holden. "When the rest of the industry
reports, I believe you'll see us with a first quarter market share in the
16 percent range, up significantly over the 1997 first quarter. The strong
first quarter results lead us to believe that 1998 will again be a very good
year both for Chrysler and the industry."
Chrysler U.S. Sales Summary, Thru March 1998
Month Sales DR % Sales CYTD DR % Sales MYTD DR %
Model Curr Pr Change Curr Pr Change Curr Pr Change
Yr Yr Yr Yr Yr Yr
Neon 6814 8260 -18% 21011 21380 -2% 42973 40985 5%
Breeze 5465 7476 -27% 15408 22082 -30% 35921 38086 -6%
Prowler 115 0 0% 243 0 0% 335 0 0%
PLYMOUTH
CAR 12394 15736 -21% 36662 43462 -16% 79229 79071 0%
Voyager 13150 14061 -6% 37459 37596 0% 70753 71119 -1%
PLYMOUTH
TRUCK 13150 14061 -6% 37459 37596 0% 70753 71119 -1%
PLYMOUTH
BRAND 25544 29797 -14% 74121 81058 -9% 149982 150190 0%
Cirrus 3214 2330 38% 9809 6772 45% 19370 13230 46%
Sebring
Convertible 4328 5792 -25% 14332 15006 -4% 24125 27339 -12%
Sebring
Coupe 2849 3228 -12% 7147 7495 -5% 14740 13559 9%
Concorde 6576 4756 38% 13091 12725 3% 16665 24378 -32%
LHS 99 3165 -97% 574 10549 -95% 2342 18949 -88%
300M 0 0 0% 0 0 0% 0 0 0%
CHRYSLER
CAR 17066 19271 -11% 44953 52547 -14% 77242 97455 -21%
Town &
Country 5714 6464 -12% 17378 16801 3% 37241 35642 4%
CHRYSLER
TRUCK 5714 6464 -12% 17378 16801 3% 37241 35642 4%
CHRYSLER
BRAND 22780 25735 -11% 62331 69348 -10% 114483 133097 -14%
Cherokee 11390 9673 18% 32717 23881 37% 69165 55237 25%
Grand
Cherokee 19267 20698 -7% 55660 61402 -9% 127883 140359 -9%
Wrangler 6217 7467 -17% 15594 19900 -22% 32980 39600 -17%
JEEP BRAND 36874 37838 -3% 103971 105183 -1% 230028 235196 -2%
Talon 376 1005 -63% 1097 2689 -59% 3094 5031 -39%
Vision 46 604 -92% 207 2090 -90% 718 3846 -81%
EAGLE BRAND 422 1609 -74% 1304 4779 -73% 3812 8877 -57%
CPJE CAR 29882 36616 -18% 82919 100788 -18% 160283 185403 -14%
CPJE TRUCK 55738 58363 -4% 158808 159580 0% 338022 341957 -1%
CPJE
DIVISION 85620 94979 -10% 241727 260368 -7% 498305 527360 -6%
Neon 10948 11422 -4% 30026 28508 5% 61819 55098 12%
Stratus 10363 8195 26% 33042 23902 38% 58653 46538 26%
Intrepid 8585 14659 -41% 24264 42137 -42% 36411 72922 -50%
Avenger 1781 3135 -43% 5057 7252 -30% 10993 12959 -15%
Viper 97 99 -2% 269 390 -31% 623 973 -36%
DODGE CAR 31774 37510 -15% 92658 102189 -9% 168499 188490 -11%
Caravan 24948 26430 -6% 70159 69394 1% 133654 136886 -2%
Durango 12283 0 0% 33538 0 0% 53801 0 0%
Dakota 13416 11566 16% 38012 31500 21% 72967 59730 22%
Ram P/U 32057 31713 1% 87025 86961 0% 183031 182747 0%
Ram Wagon 2052 2384 -14% 3617 6109 -41% 4626 10591 -56%
Ram Van 4527 5933 -24% 11564 16134 -28% 21873 31676 -31%
DODGE
TRUCK 89283 78026 14% 243915 210098 16% 469952 421630 11%
DODGE
DIVISION 121057 115536 5% 336573 312287 8% 638451 610120 5%
TOTAL CAR 61656 74126 -17% 175577 202977 -13% 328782 373893 -12%
TOTAL
TRUCK 145021 136389 6% 402723 369678 9% 807974 763587 6%
TOTAL CAR
& TRUCK 206677 210515 -2% 578300 572655 1% 1136756 1137480 0%
Selling Days 26 26 76 76 153 153
SOURCE Chrysler Corporation