April 2011 sales report numbers indicate that all three of the German luxury brands saw a significant increase in the total of units sold in the United States. Toyota’s Lexus saw a decrease in sales.
Sales of BMW vehicles increased 8.9% in April for a total of 18,801 compared to 17,268 vehicles sold in April, 2010. In April, best performing segment was BMW SAV, up 65.0%. The new X3 was up 253% to 2,277 units; the X5 was up 12.5% to 2,360 units and the X6 was up 36.3% to 522 units. The BMW SAV segment (X3, X5, X6) continues to show growth with sales for the year-to-date up 43.3% to 19,600 in the first four months of 2011 compared with 13,675 in the same period of 2010.
The new BMW 5 Series sales have been strong as well, with 3,668 unit sold in April, 77 percent more than same month last year.
The Stuttgart-based Mercedes-Benz sold 18,042 cars and SUVs last month, 2.3 percent more than the same month in 2010. The highest volume performers for the month were the E- and C-Class model lines. The E-Class led the pack with sales of 5,342, up 17.9% over April 2010. The C-Class continued its strong momentum with sales of 5,232, up 13.1% over last year. M-Class finished third in volume with monthly sales of 1,990.
Overall, in April, BMW sold 29 units more than Mercedes-Benz and taking the lead in the premium segment.
Audi continues to show accelerated growth in the US. In April, Audi sold 10,018 luxury vehicles, surpassing the prior April record set in 2010 of 9,319 vehicles, or 7.5 percent. The top models sold were the A4 and A5 with 3,328, respectively 1,437. The new Audi A8 had a sales increase of 519.8% from a year earlier. Clean diesel sales continued to reflect the surging demand for fuel-efficient models as the Audi A3 TDI and the Audi Q7 TDI accounted for 61% and 47% in their vehicle lines.
Audi Q7 full-size luxury crossover sales posted a 24.2% increase over April 2010 sales. The X3 competitor, Q5 was sold to 1,977 customers.
Lexus reported passenger car sales of 8,453 units, down 17.8 percent from April 2010. The entry luxury sedan ES led Lexus passenger car sales with sales of 3,493 units, while the IS lineup reported combined sales of 2,640. The all-new CT 200h hybrid premium compact posted 875 units in its second month of sales. Lexus light trucks recorded sales of 9,123 units, up 3.9 percent over April 2010.
Jaguar’s newly redesigned sport-luxury cars helped pull the brand up 39 percent, 1,249 units sold.
Author: Horatiu Boeriu
Source: http://www.bmwblog.com/2011/05/05/by-th ... um-market/