Chevrolet Express sales increased in the United States and in Canada in February 2018.
| MODEL | FEB 2018 / FEB 2017 | FEBRUARY 2018 | FEBRUARY 2017 | YTD 2018 / YTD 2017 | YTD 2018 | YTD 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXPRESS | +16.22% | 6,111 | 5,258 | +28.88% | 12,347 | 9,580 |
| MODEL | FEB 2018 / FEB 2017 | FEBRUARY 2018 | FEBRUARY 2017 | YTD 2018 / YTD 2017 | YTD 2018 | YTD 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXPRESS | +49.38% | 360 | 241 | +62.56% | 738 | 454 |
Sales of the aging old but trusty Chevy Express family outpaced those of the segment in February, with the performance placing the model into second place in its segment, behind the significantly more modern Ford Transit (see Ford Transit sales) in first place. The gap between the Express and Transit was 3,555 units in February.
Third place went to the Ford E-Series (see Ford E-Series sales), which is available exclusively in the cutaway configuration. The Ram ProMaster took fourth (see Ram ProMaster sales), the Express’ twin – the GMC Savana took fifth (see GMC Savana sales), and the Nissan NV rounded out the segment in sixth.
It’s worth noting that the Transit and E-Series offerings of GM cross-town rival, Ford Motor Company, saw cumulative deliveries of 13,270 units, accounting for roughly 55 percent of the segment during the month. Meanwhile, GM’s offerings – consisting of Chevy Express and GMC Savana sales – accounted for 7,589 units, or roughly a 31 percent share – significantly less than that of Ford. Even so, the fact that the Express (and Savana) can garner as many deliveries as it does is quite impressive, given that it is the oldest vehicle in the segment that has seen very few changes over the past two decades.
We attribute the Express’ sustained sales performance to being cost-effective to buy, upfit, operate and maintain, despite the availability of significantly newer and more competitive competitors. Working in the Express’ favor is a well-established market for up-fitters that prepare the vehicles for various commercial duties. Additionally, we believe that the 2.8L Duramax Turbo-Diesel LWN engine and 8-speed automatic transmission (M5U) that were introduced for the 2017 model year have generated increased interest in the model.
| MODEL | FEB 18 / FEB 17 | FEBRUARY 18 | FEBRUARY 17 | YTD 18 / YTD 17 | YTD 18 | YTD 17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TRANSIT | -6.57% | 9,666 | 10,346 | -5.18% | 17,178 | 18,116 |
| EXPRESS | +16.22% | 6,111 | 5,258 | +28.88% | 12,347 | 9,580 |
| E-SERIES | -10.26% | 3,604 | 4,016 | +19.20% | 8,709 | 7,306 |
| PROMASTER | -15.60% | 2,235 | 2,648 | -33.22% | 4,006 | 5,999 |
| SAVANA | -19.80% | 1,478 | 1,843 | -29.24% | 2,178 | 3,078 |
| NV | -20.68% | 1,139 | 1,436 | -19.03% | 2,162 | 2,670 |
| TOTAL | -5.14% | 24,233 | 25,547 | -0.36% | 46,580 | 46,749 |
The full-size mainstream van segment, which includes passenger, cargo, and cutaway/chassis cab models, contracted 5.14 percent in February and 0.36 percent in the first two months of 2018.
2016 Chevy Express Passenger van
The Chevrolet Express is a line of full-size vans offered in cargo, passenger, and cutaway configurations. It slots above the Chevrolet City Express compact van, which is currently sourced from Nissan.
The first-generation Express ran from the 1996-2002 model years and was based on the GMT 600 platform. In 2003, an updated model was launched on what is known as the GMT 610 platform. This updated model remains on sale today, albeit the range has undergone a few updates to powertrain and minor styling changes. The Express also has a GMC-badged twin – the GMC Savana.
It is currently unclear whether or when General Motors will overhaul the Express, which is showing its age. The 2018 model year will represent its 16th year on the market.
The Chevrolet Express is built primarily at the GM Wentzville factory in Missouri operated by GM USA. In early 2017, Navistar began contract assembly of the Express cutaway in its factory in Springfield, Ohio, as part of GM’s plan to boost the model’s production and supply.
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@alexluft, "We attribute the Express’ sustained sales performance in the face of much newer and more competitive offerings to the model due to being highly cost-effective to buy, unfit, operate and maintain." I'm assuming you meant "Upfit" instead of "Unfit", I also threw "of" and "due to" in there for ya, it's got to be a better way to help you guys with Corrections then to put it out here like this, but it's Truly Astonishing this Old Van is still bringing it to the party like this, Dam, the New Van is gonna be Mind Blowing... ?
Tony - I re-wrote that entire sentence. Despite the contact page being a better avenue for bringing oversights to our attention, I do appreciate you pointing it out in the first place.
Here's to hoping there is a new van :)
curious why canadian numbers were not included?? Also was there a price drop for the GM twins as an increase in sales seems kind of strange unless the others were all bad for some reason (which they are not) or they were in short supply..
A little item in the second picture is a good clue to the age of the picture and the last time this van was updated, haha! To all my Michigan friends, notice the Blue license plate? ; )
Well it has an OnStar antenna on it and that was added 2 to 3 years ago IIRC. So the picture isn't that old.
It's impressive to see that with very minimal changes to this Van for well over a decade now, that it still has a solid platform to stand on despite the ongoing competition with more updated sheet metal and tech updates. Let's hope GM doesn't remain stagnant for too much longer for an update, GM already has the expertise on what works for demanding customers when it comes to this platform, with that being a fact, GM should not have to piggyback off of a Foriegn Automaker when the next generation Express gets the "Green Light".
Why change? Buy a GM van and 15 years later buy another. That should get you pretty close to retirement.