Mustang is best selling sports car in 2020, outsells Camaro two to one

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Ford sold 61,090 Mustangs in the United States in 2020, making it the best-selling sports car in the country for the sixth straight year.

The figure is down 15.7% from the 72,489 sold in 2019, but is still impressive given the restrictions in place due to the ongoing Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Interestingly, sales of the Shelby models were up about 14% from the previous year, perhaps reflecting buyers rushing to get their hands on a Shelby GT350 before it’s gone for good. The 2020 model year is the last for the naturally aspirated Shelby, though the supercharged Shelby GT500 remains.

In contrast, sales of the Chevrolet Camaro came in at just 29,775 units for the year, down 13% from the 48,265 sold in 2019. That’s the lowest level since the fourth-generation Camaro bowed out in the early 2000s, and is a continuation of the Camaro’s decline in sales since the high of 86,297 in 2014 when the current sixth-generation model enjoyed its first full year on the market.

Chevy has announced few significant updates for the Camaro over the years. There’s even talk of the seventh-generation Camaro being canceled or possibly rebooted as an electric car. It might be a few years until we know more though, as the current sixth-gen car is expected to stick around for a while more.

While it’s sad days for the Camaro, the Dodge Challenger continues to post healthy numbers despite having arrived in its current form as a 2008 model. The Challenger racked up 52,995 sales in the U.S. in 2020, down 13% from the 60,997 in 2019.

Like the Camaro, the long-term fate of the Challenger isn’t clear. That shouldn’t come as a surprise as things are likely to be in a state of flux at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles as the company continues its merger with PSA Group to form Stellantis. As for the Mustang, a redesigned version is expected in 2022 as a 2023 model.

Sales numbers for the entire U.S. vehicle market in 2020 are still being compiled, but the overall figure is expected to have slipped about 15% to 14.4 million. The good news is that most automakers saw a spike in their fourth-quarter figures and anticipate the recovery continuing into 2021.