TORONTO: Canadians bought a record number of new vehicles in May as auto sales climbed 1.1 per cent from the same month last year, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants.
The industry is on pace for a record year as luxury brands including Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW and Lexus posted double-digit growth in sales.
Consumers bought 197,937 cars and trucks last month to bring year-to-date sales up three per cent compared to May 2014.
Fiat Chrysler took over the top spot with 31,617 vehicles sold, up 0.4 per cent from a year earlier to what the company said was a record high. The company recently completed a retooling at one of its plants in Windsor, Ont., which had cramped its supply of minivans.
“Posting an all-time record sales month while dealing with temporary constraints on some of our highest selling products proves just how diversified and strong our product portfolio has become,” chief operating officer Dave Buckingham said in a statement.
Nissan Group also said it also posted record sales, moving 11,980 vehicles, up 21.8 per cent from last year.
Ford Canada came in second place, selling 29,043 vehicles, down 8.5 per cent. Earlier today the company said it was operating one of its Oakville, Ont. assembly plants for an extra week this summer to deal with demand for is Edge sport utility vehicle.
General Motors slipped from first to third place with 27,462 vehicles sold in May, up 3.8 per cent from last year.
Toyota’s sales fell 1.9 per cent from last year to 20,291, while Honda saw sales fall by four percent from last year to 15,853.
