The Fiat 500C Is Also A Hit - Charting Canadian 500C vs. 500 Sales

Chrysler Canada has sold 8664 copies of the Fiat 500 since the car went on sale in February 2011. That first month, when only nine were sold, was all about the hardtop 500. Since then, the 500C - that's Fiat shorthand for the convertible Cinquecento - has been surprisingly popular, as well.

Last month, when the Fiat 500 became Canada's 18th-best-selling passenger car, 373 of the 1207 500s sold were convertibles. Admittedly, "convertible" may be something of a misnomer: the 500C drops its top but not its top's sides. Nevertheless, the 500C was more popular in March than the Dodge Challenger, Hyundai Veloster, Chevrolet Camaro, and Hyundai Genesis Coupe. It wasn't just sporting cars the 500C topped, either, as the 373 sales were more than enough to fend off the Acura MDX, Lincoln MKX, BMW X5, Buick Regal, and Ford Taurus.

Canadian sales of the 500C did drop in April 2012, but sales of the hardtop 500 improved to the extent that April 2012 was once again a best-ever sales month for the Fiat. The Fiat 500C found 287 buyers in April out of a total 1211 500 sales. Need perspective? smart sold 154 cars, Jaguar sold 65, and non-Countryman Mini sales (Hardtop, Clubman, Coupe, and Roadster) hit 469. 

Even south of the border, Mini only sold 258 Roadsters in a market that was 7.5 times the size. Mini USA also sold 521 Cooper Convertibles in April, 508 Clubmans, and 290 Coupes.

Fiat Canada sold its first 500C in May 2011. 27 were sold that month. During the twelve months in which the 500C has been on sale in Canada, 1428 have been sold. Over the course of those twelve months, the 500C accounted for 19.4% of all Fiat 500 sales.

Dropping the 500C's price has certainly helped. Walk into a Chrysler Canada showroom and before negotiations even begin the price will fall by $2500, a handsome 12.5% discount. The same $2500 discount applies to the hardtop Fiat 500 Pop, Sport, and Lounge, but the 500 Abarth is currently priced at $23,995 with no manufacturer rebates.

The Fiat 500C is not the only convertible Chrysler Canada sells. Sales of the Chrysler 200 Convertible slid 46.2% to 189 in April and are down 35.3% to 291 so far this year. Jeep sold 2161 Wranglers in April, up 13.7%. Through the first four months of 2012, Wrangler sales are up by an astonishing 37.2% to 5824.

Fiat's overall success has also garnered interest at more heavily-read media sources. @TGCG's tweet yesterday mentioning the brand's ability to outsell Buick, Volvo, Infiniti, Mini, Cadillac, Lincoln, Suzuki, and Scion was partially responsible for causing TTAC's Derek Kreindler to call for more European small cars. The high-energy Abarth model has provided something of a halo for the brand, too, bringing more opportunities to highlight the aggressive commercials featuring Catrina Menghia in favour of Jennifer Lopez's weak commercials from last fall.

Discounts, improved marketing, and the awareness brought about by more people simply seeing 500s on roadways all contribute to the Fiat's growing sales totals. Regardless of the reason, the chart below shows off the monthly 500C sales volume in Canada. And it's not even summer yet.

Click Chart For Larger View

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