Fiat Was Stellantis’ Best-Selling Brand Globally, Even With An 11% Drop

                                        https://www.carscoops.com/author/thanos-pappas/                                    

If you’re looking at Fiat’s US sales and wondering why the brand even matters to Stellantis after selling just 1,528 cars in 2024, or barely four a day, the answer lies far beyond American shores. Fiat’s importance to Stellantis isn’t measured in North American sales. A glance at the brand’s global footprint reveals why it remains a critical piece of the puzzle for the automotive giant.

Globally, Fiat sold over 1.2 million vehicles in 2024. That’s an 11% drop from the 1.35 million units sold in 2023, but it still crowns the Italian company as Stellantis’ top-selling brand for the fourth consecutive year. Fiat continues to be the group’s go-to for entry-level and high-volume sales, even as its electric transition stumbles in certain markets.

Fiat’s year wasn’t without challenges. For example, production of the electric 500 was paused for several weeks due to lackluster demand. Still, the brand shone brightly, maintaining its dominance in markets like Brazil, Italy, Turkey, and Algeria.

Key Markets

Unsurprisingly, Brazil was Fiat’s biggest moneymaker, accounting for 521,000 sales in 2024, a 9.5% increase over 2023. This represented a whopping 43% of Fiat’s global sales and a market share of 20.9% in Brazil, down slightly from 21.8% the previous year. Leading the charge was the Fiat Strada pickup, which racked up 144,000 sales and maintained its title as Brazil’s best-selling vehicle for the fourth consecutive year.

More: Stellantis Built Less Than 500k Cars In Italy Last Year, A 37% Drop From 2023

In its home market of Italy, Fiat retained its crown as the country’s best-selling brand with 190,000 sales in 2024, representing a market share of 10.8%. The aging Fiat Panda continued to punch above its weight, selling 102,000 units or more than half of Fiat’s total sales in Italy. In comparison, the fully electric Fiat 500e sold a measly 2,000 units in the country. However, Fiat found brighter news in its light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment, which saw 46,000 units sold, translating to a dominant 23.6% market share.

In Turkey, Fiat extended its reign as the market leader for the sixth straight year, setting a record with an 11.2% market share. The locally produced Fiat Egea (known as the Tipo elsewhere) was the country’s top seller, with 84,000 registrations, while the Fiat Doblo emerged as Turkey’s most popular LCV.

Another strong market for Fiat was Algeria, with a 62% market share. This number remains impressive despite dropping from the dominant 78.6% of 2023. The most popular vehicle in Algeria was the Doblo, with 27,000 registrations in 2024.

What About Europe and The US?

Fiat’s performance in Europe painted a grimmer picture. While the brand didn’t release its own European figures, ACEA data shows it sold 304,066 units across the EU, UK, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland – a steep 20.4% drop compared to 2023. That puts Fiat behind Peugeot (641,246 units), Opel (414,012), and Citroen (358,828) but ahead of Jeep (130,373) within Stellantis’ European lineup. This slump was a contributor to Fiat’s overall global sales decline.

More: Fiat Confirms Next-Gen 500 For 2032, Even As It Struggles To Sell Current Electric Model

Despite this, Fiat managed some wins. The refreshed Panda retained its spot as Europe’s best-selling city car, while the 500e held the title of best-selling electric city car (A-segment) across the continent. However, the retirement of the internal combustion engine-powered Fiat 500 created a gap that the 500e hasn’t been able to fully fill. Fiat hopes to address this with the introduction of the 500 Ibrida—a hybrid model set to join the lineup in late 2024.

As for the US market, Fiat sales were limited to 1,528 units in 2024. While this is only 0.1% of its global numbers, it represents a 154% increase compared to 2023, when Fiat registered only 605 units in the US.

The CEO Remains Optimistic About The Future

Olivier Francois, Fiat CEO and Stellantis CMO remains optimistic about the brand’s future, even in the face of declining sales. “In 2024 FIAT turned 125 years old, a significant milestone that very few brands can claim, closing the year with a positive performance globally,” he said. “Indeed, we confirmed our position as Stellantis’ number one brand, with more than 1,2 million vehicles sold globally, managing to balance the transition phase we are now living in the European market and recording an excellent performance in South America. This is the real advantage of being a truly global brand.”

Francois, who also heads Abarth and DS Automobiles, added: “We are now focusing on 2025, which will be a crucial year for Fiat in Europe, starting with the launch of the new Grande Panda, in both electric and hybrid versions, and the new 500 Hybrid arriving at the end of the year. We face the future with great optimism.”