Slower than expected sales for the Alfa Romeo Giulia are now putting pressure on the automaker's new Stelvio SUV to prove popular with customers if company sales targets are to be reached.
When first launched, FCA chief executive Sergio Marchionne expected annual sales of the sleek sedan to sit between 75,000 and 100,000 units annually. However, since its European launch, May 2016 through April 2017, only 18,908 examples have been sold across the Atlantic. In the first four months of 2017, just 1,600 Giulias have been sold in the United States.
Marchionne expects Alfa Romeo to sell approximately 170,000 units this year, but according to IHS Markit, a figure nearer 120,000 is more likely, Automotive News reports.
Banca Akros analyst Gabriele Gambarova believes it will be difficult to determine how well received the Stelvio will be until the third quarter of 2017.
“In the third quarter, we might be able to get a first hint of how the Stelvio has been received in its key markets. The U.S. market could absorb 20,000 units this year between the Giulia and Stelvio."
When the Stelvio arrives in the U.S. this summer, prices will start at $42,990 and Alfa Romeo will have to hope that local customers are receptive of the Italian firm's recent return to the market as an Audi, BMW and Mercedes rival.
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