Ram Trucks Australia has achieved a significant milestone by outselling its stablemate, Jeep, for the 12th consecutive month. This remarkable feat marks the first time in history that Ram has achieved such consistent dominance in the Australian market.
Ram pick-up trucks, which are imported from the United States in their original left-hand-drive configuration and then meticulously reconfigured to right-hand-drive at the former Holden Special Vehicles facility in Melbourne, are also on track to achieve their seventh consecutive year of record-breaking sales in Australia.
The tremendous success of Ram in the Australian market has prompted its competitors, Ford and Toyota, to follow suit by introducing their American pick-up trucks to the local market, utilizing similar reconfiguration techniques. Chevrolet also offers its Silverado pick-up in Australia through a local factory-backed conversion. However, even in the face of this growing competition, Ram continues to outperform its rivals by a significant margin, consistently outselling Chevrolet’s Silverado by more than a two-to-one ratio.
Conversely, the sales trajectory for Jeep vehicles in Australia has taken a nosedive, despite a surging demand for recreational off-road vehicles and SUVs. This decline can be attributed to a series of substantial price increases that have deterred potential buyers.
Even recent attempts by Jeep to offer discounts and promotions have failed to generate substantial sales numbers. Official data for September 2023 indicates that Jeep recorded its third-lowest monthly sales figure for the year, with only 343 units sold, compared to Ram’s impressive monthly tally of 654 deliveries. This stark contrast highlights the extent of the role reversal, especially considering that in the US market, Jeep traditionally outperforms Ram.
For the first nine months of the year, Ram Trucks Australia has managed to sell 57% more vehicles than Jeep, demonstrating a significant shift in consumer preference.
As of the end of September, Ram Trucks Australia has sold 5,729 vehicles year-to-date, reflecting a robust 37.9% increase compared to the same period in the previous year. Moreover, this places Ram just 400 vehicles shy of its annual sales figure from the previous year.
In contrast, Jeep Australia is on course to achieve fewer than 5,000 sales for the entire 2023 calendar year if the current sales rate persists. This would result in Jeep’s weakest annual sales performance in Australia since the Global Financial Crisis in 2009. The downturn in sales coincides with the departure of the global head of the Jeep brand, Christian Meuniers, who recently stepped down from his role to “take a long break to focus on personal interests,” as stated in a global company press release.
During a visit to New Zealand in late 2019, Mr. Meuniers had expressed his bold belief that Jeep would not only recapture its glory days in Australia but also achieve annual sales of 50,000 vehicles, an ambitious target.
However, if Jeep Australia records around 5,000 sales this year, it will represent only 10% of the stated goal.
Ram Trucks Australia Sales Performance:
- 2023 (January to September): 5,729 (up 37.9%)
- 2022: 6,095
- 2021: 4,025
- 2020: 3,320
- 2019: 2,868
- 2018: 723
- 2017: 398
- 2016: 292
Jeep Sales Performance in Australia Over the Past 23 Years:
- 2023 (January to September): 3,654 (down 31.4%)
- 2022: 6,658
- 2021: 7,762
- 2020: 5,748
- 2019: 5,519
- 2018: 7,326
- 2017: 8,270
- 2016: 12,620
- 2015: 24,418
- 2014: 30,408
- 2013: 22,170
- 2012: 18,014
- 2011: 8,648
- 2010: 5,975
- 2009: 4,193
- 2008: 5,232
- 2007: 5,744
- 2006: 5,099
- 2005: 5,078
- 2004: 4,502
- 2003: 4,389
- 2002: 4,569
- 2001: 3,584
- 2000: 3,732
