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