BMW is just a few thousand unit sales away from taking the No.1 spot from Lexus as the largest luxury automaker in the United States.

“We’re really breathing down Lexus’ neck,” said Jim O’Donnell, CEO of BMW Group’s North American sales operation. ”We were slightly ahead of Lexus (in sales) until July. But we expect business to pick up and have a strong fourth quarter. We could catch them.”

For the first 8 months of 2009, BMW has sold a total of 129,176 units, while Lexus has sold 131,469. Analysts say that BMW has been working hard to expand its lineup with new product offerings such as the new BMW 5-Series Gran Turismo.

“That’s really helped them close the gap with Lexus,” George Augustaitis, a market analyst with CSM Worldwide in Northville told the Detroit News.

Lexus has been the top selling luxury automaker in the U.S. for the past 9 years.

- By: Stephen Calogera

Source: Detroit News