News: Dodge Dart missed sales target as inventory mounts

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Chrysler Group LLC may have reported its 32nd consecutive month of year-over-year sales gains in November, but sales of its all-new 2013 Dodge Dart were down almost 18 percent, raising concern about a vehicle that has so much riding on it.

The Dart, which went on sale in August, is aimed squarely at the heart of the fast-growing compact car segment — an arena in which Chrysler has not fielded a serious contender since it pulled the plug on the Neon back in 2005. Based on the acclaimed Alfa Romeo Giulietta, it also represents the first real offspring of the marriage between Chrysler and Italy's Fiat SpA.

Last month, Chrysler sold just 4,489 Darts, almost a thousand less than it sold in October. That is significant, because the industry as a whole reported its strongest sales in nearly five years on Monday. And that has some analysts worried.

"It is of concern, because the small-car segment is doing very well right now — and they are missing the boat on that," said Michelle Krebs of Edmunds.com. "Their numbers should be higher. But they are establishing themselves in a space they haven't played in for some time."

Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne has left little doubt how important the Dart is to Chrysler's turnaround.

"Our future hangs on how well we do here," he said after meeting with workers at the factory in Belividere, Ill., where the new car was being readied in May. "I can probably get one car wrong. Of all the cars I can get wrong, it ain't this one. This one is too visible, it's too large, it's got too much embedded into it to go wrong."

But November's results suggest the Dart may not quite be hitting the mark. At least, not the models on dealer lots.

One of the big things Marchionne touted about the Dart was its 100,000 buildable combinations. That level of hyper-customization is central to his strategy for Chrysler. But special-ordering a Dart can take months, and most American consumers are unwilling to wait that long. So the company and its dealers still need to guess which combinations of features and options will be most appealing.

"We're still very much in the ramp-up mode for the Dart. We're still trying to get the right mix out there," said Dodge Brand President Reid Bigland. "But we like the spot we're in."

That is because the Dart is selling for a lot more than its competitors.

Last month, the average price paid for a Dart after incentives and other special offers was $22,012. Bigland said that is about $2,600 more than the average for compact cars. He suggested many of Chrysler's competitors are boosting demand for their vehicles by offering big incentives. That undercuts profitability.

Bigland said that is precisely the sort of short-term thinking that led Chrysler to federal bankruptcy court in 2009, and it is something the born-again Chrysler wants to avoid.

"We're not emptying the piggy bank," he said, adding that Chrysler has only been offering $500 in cash to new customers.

That might be part of the problem, Krebs said, suggesting that Chrysler think about putting more money on the hood. That is what Ford Motor Co. did when its new compact Ford Focus got off to a rocky launch last year. And it worked. Focus sales are up 38.3 percent year-to-date; they were up 56 percent month-over-month in November.

Rethinking the advertising might also help, Krebs said.

The Dart's how-to ads are fun to watch and have been a hit with viewers, but Krebs said they do not talk enough about the car.

"They're great, but I wonder if the actual Dart gets lost in the shuffle," she said. "They need to go back to the drawing board with marketing and maybe do some incentives."

Bigland said Chrysler is upping the incentives on the Dart as part of its year-end sale, but only by $250.

Analyst Jim Hall of 2953 Analytics LLP also has concerns about the Dart ads, but he is less worried about the pace of sales. He says Chrysler's previous owners — Daimler AG and Cerberus Capital Management LP — failed to invest in a credible replacement for the Neon even as the market was shifting in favor of small cars.

The Dart's predecessor, the Dodge Caliber, was one of the most reviled vehicles in recent memory and convinced most consumers to look elsewhere for small cars.

"The brand has zero consideration in the compact segment because of the Caliber, so every vehicle they sell over the Caliber is a success," Hall said. "Sergio is paying for the idiocy of Daimler and Cerberus. And there will be more of those payments that Sergio will have to make over the next few years."

But he said Marchionne and his team have realistic expectations for the Dart.

"Their forecasting was not gigantic for this car," Hall said. "It was not the sort of numbers that Ford would wave around. They knew this was going to be an uphill battle."

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121205/AUTO0101/212050325
 
This is not necessarily bad news, the focus ha a rough start too because of high cost of options. It's healthier to move a decent amount of cars at a good profit than a huge amount of cars at a loss or near zero profit. We have to wait until the end of the second year of sales before we judge the success of this car. This will give a whole year of sales after the traditional second year tweaks are implemented.
 
This is not necessarily bad news, the focus ha a rough start too because of high cost of options. It's healthier to move a decent amount of cars at a good profit than a huge amount of cars at a loss or near zero profit. We have to wait until the end of the second year of sales before we judge the success of this car. This will give a whole year of sales after the traditional second year tweaks are implemented.

volume is way more important than net profit. I used to sell laptops @ 2-3% profit instead of 5%, result; my sales tripled! instead of selling at 5% and making 40000$ of sales, I would pull 120000$ a month.
 
volume is way more important than net profit. I used to sell laptops @ 2-3% profit instead of 5%, result; my sales tripled! instead of selling at 5% and making 40000$ of sales, I would pull 120000$ a month.

5% of 40,000$ is 2,000$ and 2% of 120,000$ is 2,400$

So you did 300% more work for 20% more money? Interesting.
 
Oui la pub était super génial mais est-ce qu'elle était informative?? Je veux dire, pour le public cible, est-ce que la pub était bonne? Je ne crois pas. On a fait promotion d'une voiture ''jeune'' et racé, on a essayé de vendre un attitude, un genre alors que le public cible, le gros des ventes se retrouve dans une clientele cherchant une voiture économique et honnete.

Honnetement j'en ai pratiquement pas vue de Dart, a vrai dire je peux les compter sur une main je crois.

La neon a tellement laissé un gout amer que la pente a remonter était tres abrupte... Une belle combinaison de voiture pas a la hauteur et d'un mauvais marketing.


En plus si vous regarder un peu la presse automobile, faut dire que la Cruze a eu un bien meilleur accueil que la Dart et sa affecte la décision du client sans compter que la concurrence est extremement relevé dans cette catégorie (Cruze, Civic, Elantra, 3, etc)
 
Les pubs n'ont plus besoin d'être informatives. Si tu veux savoir combien il y a de cup holders, tu peux aller sur dodge.com, youtube, google, appeler le dealer, aller chez le dealer.
 
Les pubs n'ont plus besoin d'être informatives. Si tu veux savoir combien il y a de cup holders, tu peux aller sur dodge.com, youtube, google, appeler le dealer, aller chez le dealer.


Les jeunes comme nous et les trippeux d'automobile on marche de meme. Mais le public cible d'une berline compacte de base, les matantes, les petites familles, les p'tit vieux, etc ne vont pas sur internet. Tu vas a la banque et c'est plein de monde qui paye leur compte au guichet et au comptoir, si tu es pas capable d'aller sur internet voir ton solde tu es pas capable d'aller sur le site de Dodge et te fabriquer un véhicule. En plus as-tu déja été te monter un véhicule sur le site de dodge? Sérieux il est vraiment mal fait et pour connaitre justement le nombre de cup holder et le positionnement de la prise Ipod tu dois tjs aller clicker dans des sous menus.



Sérieusement la pub de la Dart est vraiment cool, j'aime vraiment le concept mais en bout de ligne tu sais quoi?? TU sais a peine a quoi le char ressemble pcq tu le vois un peu rapidement a la fin, tu sais qu'il a une grosse écran ( qui fait quoi?) tu connais son prix de base et sa consomation...

Regarde les autres compagnies, ils ont tous fait des grosse campagne de PRIX. Le monde s'en criss de savoir qu'elle commence a 17 995$. L'acheteur type de cette catégorie de véhicule veut savoir que pour 199$ par mois tu as une Dart neuve avec le groupe électrique et le climatiseur.

J'ai un ami chez Dodge, le probleme n'est pas que le monde aime pas l'auto, le gros probleme est que personne se pointe au garage pour avoir de l'info sur le véhicule.
 
5% of 40,000$ is 2,000$ and 2% of 120,000$ is 2,400$

So you did 300% more work for 20% more money? Interesting.

2-3% more often 3.. And i worked less in fact, people often shop for a price, they know what they want ( most of the time) so less time justifying the price.

Again, volume is better than net profit, those laptops that i sold were new models ( highest profit possible) Instead of trying to sell them at 5% and them STAYING on the shelfs, eventually lowering the price as newer models are released , i sold them right away at a lower profit but still more than keeping them on the shelf's and within a month price would drop 2-3% anyways.

Especially with any manufacturer , higher the volume sold, lower the price of production.

Quite simple really..
 
Regarde les autres compagnies, ils ont tous fait des grosse campagne de PRIX. Le monde s'en criss de savoir qu'elle commence a 17 995$. L'acheteur type de cette catégorie de véhicule veut savoir que pour 199$ par mois tu as une Dart neuve avec le groupe électrique et le climatiseur.

J'ai un ami chez Dodge, le probleme n'est pas que le monde aime pas l'auto, le gros probleme est que personne se pointe au garage pour avoir de l'info sur le véhicule.


Exact, ca c'est la strategie la plus "vendeur" dans ce segment: La publicite doit se concentre sur le prix par mois, c'est pour ca que un model de base avec un prix tres bas est important d;avoir. Si le monde entend "2013 nouvelle Dart 169$/mois", les gens rentre dans le dealer, c;est sur meme si pas grande monde vas vraiment achete un Dart sans a/c et.
 
2-3% more often 3.. And i worked less in fact, people often shop for a price, they know what they want ( most of the time) so less time justifying the price.

Again, volume is better than net profit, those laptops that i sold were new models ( highest profit possible) Instead of trying to sell them at 5% and them STAYING on the shelfs, eventually lowering the price as newer models are released , i sold them right away at a lower profit but still more than keeping them on the shelf's and within a month price would drop 2-3% anyways.

Especially with any manufacturer , higher the volume sold, lower the price of production.

Quite simple really..

I hardly believe that lowering a 1000$ laptop by 20$ tripled your sales immediately....
 
Genuine general car-buying public criteria #1: Looks.

The Cruze looks good, the Dart doesn't (especially that atrocious grafted ass-end). The Cruze sells, the Dart doesn't. Easy enough to explain.

Majority of peeps don't give a crap about valve sizes and name of designer. For a same price range, a bland, good looking car will outsell anything else. This is what made Toyota huge, and what Chrysler NEVER understood.
 
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