July markets slow worldwide for Chrysler's Belvidere trio
Vehicles line the lot Friday, June 9, 2010, at the Belvidere Chrysler plant.
Aug 14, 2010
BELVIDERE — Dealers worldwide didn’t have a lot of luck moving the Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot in July, according to statistics from Chrysler Group LLC.
In July, the company shipped off 14,313 Dodge Calibers, Jeep Compasses and Jeep Patriots to dealers, nearly 44 percent fewer than July 2009. Those three vehicles are assembled by more than 2,300 people at Chrysler’s plant in Belvidere.
The only Chrysler market to show a gain was Mexico, where Chrysler has a small footprint. Sales grew from 454 in July 2009 to 953 in July 2010. The Patriot by far is the most popular of the Belvidere trio in Mexico.
Sales of the Caliber, Compass and Patriot fell nearly 7 percent year over year in markets outside North America. They tumbled 34.5 percent in Canada and 54.3 percent in the U.S.
The U.S. numbers were skewed by the fact that July 2009 sales were artificially high because of the government’s cash-for-clunkers program that gave incentives to trade in aging, low-mileage vehicles for newer, gas-friendly models. The Caliber and Patriot were among the 10 most bought vehicles in the program.
Even though sales struggled in July, they easily outpaced production. Chrysler closed its Belvidere assembly plant for two weeks for summer vacation.
LINK:
July markets slow worldwide for Chrysler's Belvidere trio - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star
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