(October 3, 2019) Car sales were down year-over-year in September for nearly all the mainstream automakers. But the biggest news came from Subaru where for the first time 93 months sales were down, dipping 9.4 percent compared to September 2018. Subaru reported 51,659 sales in September compared to 57,044 in 2018.

The automaker cited low inventories and fewer selling days for the decline. The September sales dip followed a hot August for the brand and its crossover-heavy lineup in which it surpassed the 70,000 mark for the first time in what was a record month.

And while Subaru's incredible monthly streak has been snapped, the automaker said it remains on track to hit a target of 700,000 U.S. sales in 2019.

“2019 is already turning out to be another record year for Subaru thanks to the excellent efforts of our retailers,” said Thomas J. Doll, president and CEO, Subaru of America, Inc.

“Due to the rapid sell-down of the last generation Legacy and Outback models, our yearly, month-over-month sales streak of 93 consecutive months came to an end in September. We look forward to robust sales in October and are on target to achieve our 700,000-vehicle sales goal for 2019, marking 12 consecutive years of sales increases.”

“Buoyed by the sales success of the all-new Forester, and strong demand for the outgoing Outback and Legacy, we started September with historically low inventory levels,” said Jeff Walters, senior vice president of Sales. “With the all-new 2020 Outback and Legacy starting to arrive at retailers and a strong book of presold orders waiting to be delivered, we look forward to strong sales in October and the remainder of the year.”