Chrysler September Sales Plummet 42 Percent

The bailout babies of the US auto industry took a pummeling in the post-Cash For Clunkers sales environment, as Chrysler very nearly matched GM’s precipitous decline. Unlike GM though, Chrysler isn’t predicting a turnaround by year’s end. “We believe the remainder of 2009 will continue to be a challenge for the U.S. automotive market,” says Chrysler brand boss Peter Fong [via PRNewswire]. “Credit markets have thawed slightly, but still remain tight, and consumer confidence, as we saw in September, is tenuous.” And yet nothing seems to be quite as tenuous as Chrysler’s grip on its razor-thin market share.

By brand, only Jeep managed to avoid total collapse, as sales of the off-road brand fell a dainty 20 percent. Dodge slid a significant 43 percent, showing why Fiat is reportedly considering stripping off the Ram truck brand and selling it off if things don’t improve. Meanwhile, the Chrysler brand showed why rumors of its brandicide continue to persist, falling a staggering 61 percent.

Quick, name the only Chrysler-branded nameplate to increase its sales over last September. Give up? The Crossfire, which sold 127 units to last September’s 113. And that, folks, is as good as it gets. 300 dropped 20 percent, while Town and Country fell 61 percent. Sebring shed 73 percent of its sales, while PT Cruiser and Aspen dropped 89 percent each. That Fiat executives believe a few facelifts can turn these numbers around is testament to either their faith in ChryCo’s design teams or the quality of the intoxicants in which they indulge.

Quick, name the only Jeep-branded nameplate to increase its sales over last September. Give up? The Grand Cherokee, which surprisingly added 23 percent to its sales, hitting a monthly volume of 5,601. Otherwise, Wrangler was down 2 percent, Commander fell six percent, Liberty dropped 45 percent, Patriot slid 57 percent and Compass was off by 90 percent.

Quick, name the only Dodge-branded nameplate to increase its sales over last September. Give up? It was a trick question. Sprinter and Charger were best-off with four percent and eight percent declines respectively. Challenger fell by 25 percent, Ram was down 35 percent, Avenger and Dakota were off by 36 percent, Journey fell 38 percent, Nitro dropped 55 percent, Caravan fell 63 percent and Caliber plummeted 89 percent to 654 units.

Where does Chrysler Group go from here? Though it seems that there’s nowhere to go but up, the reverse is likely to be the case. The Chrysler brand is every bit as damaged at this point as Saab or Hummer. No product in the firm’s entire portfolio has been able to maintain steady sales month-to-month. And with future product plans materializing in the form of quickie reskins, there’s absolutely no reason to believe the bleeding will stop anytime soon. Year-to-date, only the Journey, Wrangler, Ram and Challenger have failed to decline by 30 percent or more. That’s the sum total of Chrysler’s “success” in 2009, and it’s nowhere near enough to keep the company going.