Having sold 3,300 vehicles during 2007, Fiat Mexico has registered a year-on-year increase in sales of 217 percent, as it turned in three times the figures of 1,040 units that were sold the year before.

Having sold 3,300 cars and light commercial vehicles during 2007, Fiat Mexico has registered a year-on-year increase in sales of 217 percent, as it turned in three times the figures of 1,040 units that were sold in 2006, which was the first year of independent operations by the brand in the Mexican market, reveals the Mexican newspaper, The Financial.

This impressive increase was of major importance because the Mexican new automobile market suffered a contraction of 3.5 pct over the previous year, and in particular it saw a fall of 16.4 pct in the segments occupied by subcompact cars, the niche market of the Italian brand.

Fiat's return to the Mexican market two years ago is part of a wider strategy to boosts its operations across Latin America. Currently Fiat is the dominant market leader in Brazil, the region's biggest market where it boasts huge production facilities, and is also making a concerted push to regain ground in Argentina, where it recently restarted vehicle production at its mothballed plant in Córdoba. Fiat Mexico expects that through this year it will keep firmly to its path of accelerated growth, and as well as launching new products during 2008, it hopes to achieve a year-end sales figure of 5,500 units.

Last year the Fiat model that gained the biggest acceptance with car buyers in Mexico was the Siena saloon (sold locally as the Palio Sedan), which saw 609 units hitting the roads, closely followed by the Grande Punto, with 605 units leaving the showrooms in all its versions. In the third place was the Fiat Palio Adventure, with 495 of these cost-effective 'off road' versions being sold; while, after only being on sale on the market for seven months, the Fiat Idea Adventure was positioned in the fourth with 407 examples finding Mexican buyers.

Moreover, the leading Italian brand last year expanded its network of concessionaires up to thirteen agencies operating in major cities around the country, and it will grow further this year to a projected total of twenty agencies covering sales and service.

by Claudio Perlini