More Canadians bought automobiles in 2017 than ever before, according to figures released this week.
Sales of passengers cars and light trucks in Canada broke records for the fifth straight year, and in 2017, surpassed the two-million mark for the first time. These figures are reported by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, Canada’s only market-research firm tracking the country’s car sales.
Car sales were up last year by 4.6%, to top off at over 2,038,000.
Michael Hatch, chief economist for the Canadian Auto Dealers Association (CADA), says he’s not surprised by the health of the Canadian auto market.
“This is great news for dealers but also for the economy at large,” says Hatch in a statement. “New vehicle sales have been uniformly strong across almost the entire country this year, reflecting strong job growth and consumer confidence. The two million threshold is an important milestone for the industry, and to be frank, not one that many had anticipated just a few years ago.”
The American Big Three continue to do well north of the border. According to the report, Ford is still the best-selling make in Canada with over 308,000 vehicles sold, despite an 11.3% drop in December sales from 2016.
General Motors saw its year-to-year December sales go up 9.2% to close out the year with less than 303,000 vehicles sold in Canada. Chrysler sold over 267,000 cars for a 4% drop for 2017, though its popular Dodge Ram brand had a record year and the Windsor-built Pacifica minivan posted its best December ever with 638 vehicles sold.
Among Japanese brands, Toyota had its best year ever in Canada. Toyota sold over 199,700 vehicles in 2017 for a modest increase of 2.3% from the year before. Honda is fifth overall with just under 177,000 vehicles sold for a 6.3% year-to-year jump. Nissan had the most significant increase among imports, with 134,000 vehicles sold for a 10% climb.
Volkswagen was the Canadian sales leader in European brands in 2017, selling over 69,600 vehicles for a 16% sales increase.