The Fiat Ducato, with sales up 37 percent in April, has led the charge by Fiat Commercial Vehicles which has seen a new all-time worldwide monthly sales record set last month, while the first quarter of 2005 saw the best-ever Ducato quarterly sales figure in the history of Fiat's big van and cab chassis range.

Across Europe Fiat set new records, led by a 16.2 per cent increase in Italy, growing market share to 43.9 per cent, with Germany, France and Spain following in the wake of Fiat's home market.

The good performance have been driven by the customer appeal of the models powered by Fiat's advanced JTD diesel engine range, that are appreciated by customers for the great performances and low fuel consumption.

The Fiat Ducato has been the top performer for Fiat in Italy, recording an excellent result in April with more than 4,000 units sold (up 37 per cent vis-à-vis April 2004) and the best result ever in the period January-April 2005 with over 12,500 deliveries, 317 more than in the first four months of last year. The new 2.8 JTD Power 146 CVs with turbine to varying geometry versions have significantly contributed to the success of Ducato, accounting for 15 percent of the sales mix of the vehicle.

According to the first provisional data, also on the European market, the month of April resulted as the best ever if compared with the same month of the past years, with over 20,000 units delivered.
 

In particular, Fiat Light Commercial Vehicles have achieved excellent results in Germany, with 3,400 deliveries made to customers, France, with 2,570 delivered, and Spain which saw just under two thousand versions of the Ducato sold last month.