The end of Monthly Sales Numbers from FCA
It’s the end of an era. This week FCA will report monthly US sales numbers for the final time. After the June 2019 sales numbers are released, FCA will begin reporting quarterly. The monthly reporting was one constant that survived independent Chrysler, DCX, Cerebus, and the first several years of FCA. But like Ford and GM already have, FCA is converting to quarterly reporting.
But there may be more drama than normal when the numbers are released this time.
In July of 2016, FCA announced that it was revising the way it counts sales and would restate sales for approximately 5 years. Before it restated the sales numbers, FCA had claimed 75 months of year-over-year sales gains in June 2016. But the revised numbers show the streak ended earlier in September 2013. Ironically, the overall sales were up over the restating period, but the long winning streak was gone.
Now almost 3 years later the fallout is continuing. On June 5, Reid Bigland (Head of U.S. Sales for FCA) filed a whistleblower lawsuit involving the restated sales. Just days earlier, he had delivered the May 2019 results. Bigland claims FCA withheld bonuses and shares that would account for 90% of his 2018 compensation because he participated in a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation. FCA claims it was justified in withholding the compensation.
Meanwhile Bigland still seems popular with the dealers. And he’s sticking around. Why? FCA probably doesn’t want to fire him and create additional possible damages. Maybe Bigland and his legal team think it’s better to remain at least until this is settled. Will Bigland be there for the delivery of the June 2019 sales numbers?
Mark has been a technical writer for many years, working for automotive suppliers. He has always been an avid reader of magazines and websites dedicated to the domestic auto industry, and spent a lot of time analyzing sales trends in changing automotive markets. Mark’s fascination with the automotive industry began by reading yearbooks as a young child that highlighted the yearly changes cars used to receive every fall. From that, he developed a love of model car building.
The cars of his childhood were mainly large Ford and Chevrolet sedans. Some of his previous restoration projects include a 1967 Plymouth Valiant, a 1980 Plymouth Volare Road Runner, and a 1989 Dodge Dakota Sport Convertible.
You can reach Mark at +1.516-531-4021.