05.10.2004 The Italian Transport Ministry today released new car registration details for September, and for Fiat Auto they made for good reading

The Italian transport ministry today released new car registration details for September, and for Fiat Auto they made for good reading, their share of 27.7 percent, up 0.8 percent year-on-year.

A further boost to the giant Italian carmaker was the fact that the total number of new car registrations last month, at 179,800 vehicles, was itself fractionally down, by 0.66 percent, on September 2003.

The registration volume of Fiat Auto also climbed by 2.3 percent last month, while market demand for the first nine months of the year, almost flat at 0.9 percent, was outperformed by Fiat Auto, who increased their sales by 2.7 percent during the first three quarters.

Last month, both the Fiat and Lancia brands boosted their market presence. Fiat were up 1.3 percent, while the luxury Lancia division, notched up a very pleasing 15.9 percent rise.

Fiat hold four positions within the top best selling Italian cars. The evergreen Punto continues to be an Italian favourite, followed by the new Panda which has firmly established itself in second place.

Niche models to perform strongly, included the Fiat Ulysse and Lancia Phedra which accounted for more than 30% of all large MPV sales, while in the smaller B-segment, the new Fiat Idea continues to establish itself.

Diesel power continues to grow in popularity with Italian car buyers. September saw oil burner's grab more than 60% of all new registrations. With a strong range of diesels, from the 1.3-litre to the 1.9-litre Multijet, Fiat are well positioned to cash in on this rapidly growing trend.