Sales to commercial fleets increased 11.1% in March, and were up 5% during the first quarter of the year. (Clockwise from l. to r.) Photos courtesy of Ford, GM, Nissan, and FCA.
Sales of vehicles to commercial fleets from nine manufactures increased 11.1% to 79,173 in March compared to a year ago as sales of trucks, vans, and SUVs increased 13.1% to 69,760 while fleet sales of passenger cars fell 1.6% to 9,413. Truck-based sales provided 88.1% of the volume, according to Automotive Fleet data.
For the year so far, sales to commercial fleets have increased 5% to 194,220. Truck-based sales have increased 8.4% to 171,922, while car sales have declined 15.3% to 22,298.
March saw a reversal of February in which fleet sales declined 1.7% and year-to-date sales fell 1.8%.