Data Point
Fleet Sales Rise Month Over Month in February, Remain Down from Year-Ago Levels
Tuesday March 9, 2021
Article Highlights
- In February, 178,252 total fleet units were sold, compared to 153,372 in January, a 16.2% month-over-month improvement.
- Combined sales into large rental, commercial, and government buyers were down 36% year over year in February.
- Government units were down 39% year over year, on a small base, while rental units were down 43% year over year in February, an improvement over the 54% year over year drop in 2020.
In February, 178,252 total fleet units were sold, compared to 153,372 in January, a 16.2% month-over-month improvement. Combined sales into large rental, commercial, and government buyers were down 36% year over year in February.
Government units were down 39% year over year, on a small base, while rental units were down 43% year over year in February, an improvement over the 54% year over year drop in 2020. New-vehicle sales into the commercial channel declined 14% year over year in February. We estimate that the remaining retail sales were down 5% year over year in February, leading to an estimated retail SAAR of 13.0 million, slightly up from 12.8 million last February but down from January’s 14.0 million rate.
February total new-vehicle sales were down 12.6% year over year, with two fewer selling days compared to February 2020. The February SAAR came in at 15.7 million, a decrease from last year’s 16.8 million and down from January’s 16.6 million rate.
Looking at automakers, year-over-year changes in fleet sales ranged from 8% growth to a decline of 52%. Nissan fleet sales increased 8% year over year for February. Stellantis saw the largest decrease in fleet sales in February, according to a Cox Automotive analysis.