Opinion: BMW outsells Mercedes, and it’s slightly irksome

Mercedes spent much of the early aughts investing in research and development for more niche cars than most thought the market could bear. Not long thereafter, BMW jumped on the bandwagon, and for some of us, it seemed like the death knell for BMW’s long-running trend of profitability. BMW has slightly edged out Mercedes-Benz in sales for the first six months of 2014 in the United States, and the best combined first and second quarters in BMW USA’s history. (It’s 157,382 versus 151,624, according to Carscoops)

BMW makes 21 different body styles today and inside those are 92 discrete model names for the US market; it’s a far cry from the days when the 2002 and the ‘Batmobile’ CSL meant that the company’s meat and potatoes were homologation and heritage and now the latter two are now merely a department. We learned today that the 4er Gran Coupe will not be receiving the M treatment unlike the 6er Gran Coupe. Does this mean BM is not diluting the motorsport name? Given that the X6 M is still a “thing”, and an entry-level luxury sedan with carnal levels of visual pleasure is not, it seems that the Germans are still pretending to sell out for the moment.

If you feel 92 models isn’t enough, feel free to have it out in the comments section, and/or move over to Europe, where the number of engines available in each car is roughly equivalent to the number of shades of octogenarian beige that the Toyota Camry comes in. Included after the jump is BMW’s press release and a listing of BMWs available ‘stateside.

-By: Sawyer Sutton

BMW Group U.S. Reports June 2014 Sales

  • BMW brand sales up 11.5 percent
  • MINI brand sales down 18.2 percent
  • BMW Motorcycle sales down 3.4 percent
Woodcliff Lake, NJ – July 1, 2014… The BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported June sales of 35,577 vehicles, an increase of 5.7 percent from the 33,645 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, the BMW Group (BMW and MINI combined) is up 5.1 percent on sales of 181,534 in the first half of 2014 compared to 172,787 in the same period in 2013.   
 
BMW Brand Sales – Best First Half Ever
Sales of BMW brand vehicles increased 11.5 percent in June for a total of 30,201 compared to 27,074 vehicles sold in June, 2013.  Year-to-date, the BMW brand is up 12.1 percent on sales of 157,382 compared to 140,431 sold in the first half of 2013.
 
 “The June and first-half results prove again that customer demand is solid and stronger than many have thought and we fully expect confidence and demand to stay strong through the end of the year,” said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America.  “I am particularly pleased with the results for our 2 and 4 Series models; these are driving machines at the core of the BMW brand.”   
 
BMW Pre-Owned Vehicles
In June, sales of BMW used vehicles (including certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 10.0 percent to 15,241 vehicles compared to the 13,859 vehicles sold in June 2013. Year-to-date, BMW used vehicles (including certified pre-owned) are up 13.1 percent on sales of 97,939 compared to 86,559 sold in the first half of 2013.
 
MINI Brand Sales
For June, MINI USA reported 5,376 automobiles, a decrease of 18.2 percent from the 6,571 automobiles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, MINI USA reported a sales total of 24,152 automobiles, a decrease of 25.4 percent from the 32,356 automobiles sold in the first half of 2013.
 
MINI Pre-Owned Vehicles
In June, MINI used automobiles (including MINI NEXT certified pre-owned and pre-owned) reported sales of 1,924 automobiles, an increase of 2.5 percent from the 1,877 automobiles sold in June, 2013.  Year-to-date, MINI used automobiles (including MINI NEXT certified pre-owned) reported sales of 12,339 automobiles, an increase of 19.5 percent from the 10,324 automobiles sold in the first half of 2013.
 
Table 1: Vehicle Sales BMW of North America, LLC, June 2014

  June
2014
June
 2013
% YTD June 2014 YTD June
 2013
%
BMW brand  30,201 27,074 11.5 157,382 140,431 12.1
BMW passenger cars  23,557 20,396 15.5 110,804 101,936 8.7
BMW light trucks
 
6,644 6,678 -0.5
 
46,578 38,495 21.0
 
MINI brand  5,376 6,571 -18.2
 
24,152 32,356 -25.4
 
TOTAL Group  35,577 33,645 5.7
 
181,534 172,787 5.1
 

 
BMW Motorrad Sales
BMW Motorrad USA reported sales of 1,327 motorcycles in June, a decrease of 3.4 percent from the total of 1,374 motorcycles sold in June 2013.
 
The R 1200 GS was the brand’s best selling model with 190 units, helping drive growth of 7 percent in R-Series models with 517 boxer deliveries in June compared to 482 in June of last year.
 
With 290 retails compared to 202 last year, S-Series performance increased by 44 percent with the HP4 up 168 percent in the month with 58 deliveries compared to 22 in June of 2013.
 
BMW Motorrad continues to perform ahead of last year, up 8.2 percent after 6 months.
 
Table 2: Motorcycle Sales BMW of North America, LLC, June 2014

  June
 2014
June
 2013
% YTD
2014
YTD 2013 %
BMW Motorcycles 1,327 1,374 -3.4 8,350 7,718 8.2 

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BMW Models on Sale as of July 2014

228i Coupe

M235i Coupe

 

320i Sedan

320i Sedan

328i Sedan

328i xDrive Sedan

328d Sedan

328d xDrive Sedan

335i Sedan

335i xDrive Sedan

Active Hybrid 3 Sedan

M3 Coupe

 

328i xDrive Sports Wagon

328d xDrive Sports Wagon

 

328i xDrive Gran Turismo

335i xDrive Gran Turismo

 

428i Coupe

428i xDrive Coupe

435i Coupe

435i xDrive Coupe

M4 Coupe

 

428i Gran Coupe

428i xDrive Gran Coupe

435i Gran Coupe

435i xDrive Gran Coupe

 

428i Convertible

428i xDrive Convertible

435i Convertible

M4 Convertible

 

528i Sedan

528i xDrive Sedan

535i Sedan

535i xDrive Sedan

535d Sedan

535d xDrive Sedan

ActiveHybrid 5 Sedan

550i Sedan

550i xDrive sedan

M5 Sedan

 

535i Gran Turismo

535i xDrive Gran Turismo

550i Gran Turismo

550i xDrive Gran Turismo

 

640i Coupe

640i xDrive Coupe

650i Coupe

650i xDrive Coupe

M6 Coupe

 

640i Gran Coupe

640i xDrive Gran Coupe

650i Gran Coupe

650i xDrive Gran Coupe

M6 Gran Coupe

 

640i Convertible

640i xDrive Convertible

650i Convertible

650i xDrive Convertible

M6 Convertible

 

740i Sedan

740i xDrive Sedan

740Li Sedan

740Li xDrive Sedan

740Ld xDrive Sedan

ActiveHybrid 7 Sedan

750i Sedan

750i xDrive Sedan

750Li Sedan

750Li xDrive Sedan

760Li Sedan

Alpina B7 Sedan

 

X1 sDrive28i

X1 xDrive28i

X1 xDrive35i

 

X3 sDrive28i

X3 xDrive28i

X3 xDrive28d

X3 xDrive35i

 

X4 xDrive28i

X4 xDrive35i

 

X5 sDrive35i

X5 xDrive35i

X5 xDrive35d

X5 xDrive50i

 

X6 xDrive35i

X6 xDrive50i

X6 M

 

Z4 sDrive28i

Z4 sDrive35i

Z4 sDrive35is

 

BMW i3

BMW i3 with range extender

BMW i8

Sawyer Sutton

Sawyer Sutton is a long-time Vermonter and lover of cars, big machinery, and photography. These are his words on cars as Senior Editor of egmCarTech.

sawyer has 319 posts and counting.See all posts by sawyer