You may think that it would take more than several months for an all-new model to gain sales leadership in the segment. However, that’s exactly what the 2015 Ford Transit did in November 2014 with 4,851 units sold. This is more double the 2,257 van it sold in October. Fleet sales world is quiet a bit different from the consumer side, and Ford is using the industry network to launch the Transit in a big way.
The other surprise was the Ram Promaster van with 3,290 units sold. It leap-frogged the Mercedes Sprinter by a big margin in November and got into the fourth position for the month. The GM twins: Express and Savana saw declines but still remain positive in Yeat-To-Date (YTD) numbers. The Nissan NV is having a solid year, but is also struggling to grab significant market share.
Full-size Commercial Van – November 2014 Sales
| Nov 2014 # | Nov ’14 / ’13 % | YTD 2014 # | YTD ’14 / ’13 % | |
| Ford Transit | 4,851 | NEW | 10,418 | NEW |
| Chevy Express | 4,478 | -22.5% | 73,741 | 2.5% |
| Ford E-Series | 4,151 | -59.1% | 98,007 | -13.2% |
| Ram ProMaster | 3,290 | 297.0% | 15,003 | NEW |
| Mercedes-Benz Sprinter | 2,532 | 26.0% | 22,457 | 18.3% |
| Nissan NV | 1,141 | 15.3% | 13,336 | 20.4% |
| GMC Savana | 716 | -53.3% | 24,916 | 76.5% |
Watch this TFLtruck first drive video of the updated 2015 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 4×4.
Mid-size Commercial Van – November 2014 Sales
| Nov 2014 # | Nov ’14 / ’13 % | YTD 2014 # | YTD ’14 / ’13 % | |
| Ford Transit Connect | 2,186 | -5.1% | 38,198 | 6.4% |
| Ram Cargo Van | 1,709 | 116.0% | 9,941 | 22.0% |
| Nissan NV200 | 1,131 | 82.1% | 11,583 | 210.0% |
| Chevy City Express | 24 | NEW | 24 | NEW |
Ford Transit Connect is leading the mid-size commercial van segment, although it also sells a significant number of passenger version “Wagon” model. The other competitors are primarily available in cargo van configurations. The Caravan based Ram Cargo Van is still doing well, but it will be replaced by the 2015 Ram ProMaster City next year. Chevy City Express just enters the market with 24 vans sold. And Nissan’s NV200 is still having a very successful month and year.
Check out this TFLtruck insider video on Ram’s upcoming ProMaster City.
Andre Smirnov is a life-long automotive enthusiast, writer, reporter, and software engineer. He has been a contributor at TFL since 2011.
