Brand’s sales double from May-Sept. vs. year-ago period

Powersports Business continues to learn of particular models that are having a hard time staying on dealership showroom floors due to consumer demand, and one in particular caught our attention recently, so we took a closer look.

Earlier this year, Polaris Slingshot used the word “game-changer” when announcing its model-year 2020 vehicle, introducing AutoDrive transmission and the company’s first-ever four-cylinder powertrain. Thus far in 2020, and in particularly since May, those words hold far more meaning.

Powersports Business has learned that:

• Slingshot has more than doubled the business year-over-year during the peak summer months (May – Sept.)
• In Q3, Slingshot sales were up mid-50 percent
• 80% of Slingshot’s dealer network is greater-than or equal-to its sales results in 2019. In other words, nearly every single dealer in the country is flat or growing between May and September 2020

Because of this, Slingshot has worked hard through summer to keep inventory in stock with some dealers experiencing waiting lists of eager customers wanting to own a 2020 Polaris Slingshot.

Feedback from the field is that people are coming into dealerships asking about Slingshot and, in particular, the AutoDrive transmission. In fact, over 80% of Slingshot customers in 2020 are new to Polaris.

— Dave McMahon, editor, dmcmahon at powersportsbusiness.com