Sales: Subcompact Cars, April 2011

by Edward Niedermeyer

Published: May 9th, 2011

The king is dead! After years of dominating the subcompact charts, the Nissan Versa was toppled from its top spot by not one but three upstart nameplates. Kia’s Soul, the Versa’s most consistent competition since it launched, has finally arrived as a legitimate slow-wave hit, topping 10k units and running away with the segment even as an updated model was announced at the NY Auto Show. Fiesta finally came into its own as well, racking up a thoroughly legit 9,147 sales over the month, and the lagging Fit staged something of a comeback with sales rising to 8,116 units. Versa’s fourth place finish was enough to handily beat Chevy’s aged Aveo, which itself nearly slipped below the equally aged Hyundai Accent for the month. Meanwhile, Yaris held off a solid-ish performance by Mazda2 and creamed its Scion xD cousin. With the Versa’s fall from grace (and the Cube’s non-impact) we have what may be an interesting peek at what the segment could look like when Nissan replaces its roomy Versa with its underwhelming Versa (Sunny) sedan. Of course, with new Soul, Aveo (Sonic), Accent and Rio models coming soon, there’s no telling where this segment could end up by the end of this year.

#ChartOfTheDay #NewCars #Sales #Subcompact

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SV on May 10, 2011

Nice to see the Fiesta doing so well (it topped 9k units last month too) and I'm also glad to see the dreary Versa get unseated by both the Fiesta and Soul, which are way more interesting cars. I wish the Mazda would do better, as it's one of my favorites in this class (it's gotten good enough reviews to make me question my preference for the Fiesta, for one thing) but until it gets a competitive powertrain and an actual marketing push I don't see sales improving much.

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- John Horner on May 10, 2011
  
  Mazda is stuck as a perpetual second tier brand in the US. They have never been able to move onto the consideration list for a large enough number of buyers.
  
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- Occam on May 10, 2011
  
  @John Horner Mazda has established itself as a niche player for enthusiasts on a budget, rather than being a mainstream player (now stop putting mom-doors on the back, dang-it! Can't a dude get a nice sleek 2-door? I'd even deal with the smiley face for a Mazda3 coupe!). For better or worse, that's the course they chose. Now... thing is, auto-junkies on here hate a top-dog with a passion. 5-10 years ago, GM was the bastion of all things evil. Then, once Toyota became #1, it became the target of irrational hate. Once Hyundai makes it to the top (and I believe they eventually will), they'll become the despotic juggernaut of doom that's just the nature of the beast - it's why Wal-Mart, McDonalds, Apple (the smart-phone side anyway), and Microsoft garner such hate, but you rarely see it against Target, Carl's Jr, Google (the android side of things), and Apple (the computer side of things). It's in our blood as Americans to be suspect of the big guy.
  
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- SV on May 10, 2011
  
  @John Horner That's the main thing holding it back, but a 6-speed auto and Skyactiv engine - which would almost guarantee a 40mpg rating - can only help.
  
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- CJinSD on May 10, 2011
  
  @John Horner It doesn't seem like Mazda can sell any car in any class in any kind of numbers at the moment, but didn't they sell a bunch of 1st generation Mazda 3s? I still see them everywhere, and I shopped for them twice while they were available new. The first time was February 2007. They were deep into their model cycle and the dealers had dozens of them on their lots, and yet they still wouldn't talk price! They were the most arrogant salespeople I've encountered, and I average a couple cars a year. Email inquiries went unanswered by Mazda dealers all over Virginia and I never received a follow up call from lots I walked off. A year later I was looking for a Mazda 3 in California. This was really late in the model cycle, but the result was little better. A salesman actually returned a phone call, but they still wanted list price plus dealer fluff. Wound up with a private sale low mileage used one, which has since blown up. Anyway, my sense of the market was that sales were strong throughout the 1st generation, but I wasn't watching sales numbers at the time and the new one might as well not exist.
  
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- SPPPP on May 10, 2011
  
  @John Horner The Mazda 3 had styling then.
  
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Occam on May 10, 2011

Two things stand out: 1 - I think the Soul has soaked up a lot of sales that would have gone to the Element and xB in the past. 2 - Most of the top performers have sedan models offered as well, and Americans love a notchback. 3 - The Fit is no longer the standout it once was. A few years ago, it was a 38 snubnose revolver at a knife-fight. Now, everyone else has visited the gun shop. I'm curious what happens when the Accent appears and offers almost the same cargo space of the Fit, plenty of power to spare and unheard-of fuel economy. Cool stuff. And, rumor has it that the next Versa hatchback may have the Juke's engine. If you're going to have middling Fit fuel economy, you may as well have a small rocket under the hood!

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Ozibuns on May 10, 2011

Thanks for these monthly sales charts by segments Edward!

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Mtymsi on May 10, 2011

As I have said even before the Fiesta was on the market it will be the #1 seller in this segment I think perhaps as soon as this month now that the 2011 Focus's are pretty much history. It will be the first month since the Fiesta has been on the market that its sales won't be skewed by 2011 Focus sales and current gasoline prices can only boost the sales of the entire segment. When you combine a leading class product with the depth of Ford's dealership network the vehicle can't help but to be a segment top seller. For the same reasons the new Focus will also be #1 in the compact segment in the very near future. Congratulations Ford, job well done.

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- SPPPP on May 10, 2011
  
  You should also account for the fact that the Fiesta's sales are skewed up by its novelty. Wait a year and see how it goes.
  
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- Mtymsi on May 10, 2011
  
  @SPPPP I'm basing my #1 Fiesta prediction on how well the car has sold in all the other markets it's available in. Right now in the subcompact segment the Fiesta has no real competition as no one else offers upscale subcompact cars in the U.S. That will change in the near future but right now if you want a subcompact car in the U.S. with upscale options the Fiesta is the only choice. Also, I believe that by offering the upscale options on the Fiesta Ford is satisfying a market demand that existed but wasn't fulfilled. Those reasons, gasoline prices and the number of Ford dealers nationwide will keep the Fiesta at the top of the subcompact segment. I do not believe novelty factors into many Fiesta purchases. Fiat 500's, probably most purchases (which is why I think Fiat will have to lower the 500's prices otherwise it will be a sales flop because at the current 500 price levels there is no value) but not Fiestas. Fiesta buyers I see as those that want a stylish, high MPG car that is a good value. Obviously just my opinion.
  
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- SV on May 10, 2011
  
  @SPPPP Considering the Fiesta's been available for nearly a year now, I think most "novelty" sales have been accounted for. It should continue to sell well, but there's every possibility the new Accent and Versa will sell even better.
  
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- Mtymsi on May 10, 2011
  
  @SPPPP I don't think either the new Accent or Versa will outsell the Fiesta simply because neither Nissan or Hyundai have anywhere near the dealer network Ford does. People want to buy cars from dealers that are relatively close to their home or work and in many parts of the country (outside of larger cities) Nissan & Hyundai don't have dealerships. Everything else equal the size of the dealership network will determine the amount of sales.
  
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