Decline in New Vehicle Sales

The shortage of electronic chips continues to plague new vehicle deliveries to Canadian dealerships.

Several factors point to an imbalance between the supply of new vehicles and consumer demand for several more months.

July light duty vehicle sales results, compiled for the total Canadian market by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, continue to show a monthly decline of 16.3% compared to the same period last year for a total of 130,480 units sold. These are the lowest July sales in Canada since 2001.

The report does mention, however, that microchips are starting to arrive at the assembly plants, but in uneven ways. Moreover, gas delivery bottlenecks at some component suppliers and production turbulence in Ukraine cast a cloud over hopes for a return to normalcy in the near term.

Charles Drouin, CEO of Mobilis Corporation, which includes 145 car dealerships in the greater Quebec City area, believes that these figures show that the imbalance between supply and demand is likely to continue, despite the fact that some manufacturers are managing to pull ahead. “It’s particularly difficult with electric vehicles,” says Drouin in an interview with autosphere.ca. “Consumers need to understand the situation and change their approach when considering a new vehicle. Consumers have to understand the situation and change their approach when they consider buying a new vehicle. With sometimes months of waiting to get the vehicle they want, they need to be forward thinking.”