Car sales are falling.
The U.S. auto industry set sales records in calendar year 2015, but the record-setting volume wasn’t powered by passenger cars. Instead, pickup trucks and SUVs/crossovers powered the auto industry to record-setting volume.
U.S. Vehicle Sales Rankings By Model – February 2016 YTD
U.S. Car Sales Rankings By Model – February 2016 YTD
As a follow-up to the record-setting year of 2015, U.S. auto sales are up 3.4% and surged by nearly 7% to the best February since 2001 last month. But again, traditional cars simply aren’t the reason for growth. More specifically, luxury cars are particularly worthy of blame. Car volume is down 4.3% this year; down 0.4% in February. But premium brand passenger car volume tumbled 14.5% in February and plunged 17.2% in 2016’s first two months.
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Rare is the entry level luxury car that isn’t selling less often – way less often – in 2016 than in 2015. From the top sellers, Mercedes-Benz’s C-Class and BMW’s 3-Series, through to niche models like the BMW i3 and Lexus CT200h , on to mid-tier players such as the Audi A3 and Lexus IS, almost everything is falling.
Move up a class and the story is much the same: Mercedes-Benz E-Class, BMW 5-Series, Audi A6? Down.
Through the first two months of 2015, 13.5% of the passenger cars sold in America were sold by premium auto brands. Their market share is down to 11.7% in 2016.
You can click any model name in the tables below to find historical monthly and yearly U.S. auto sales data. You can also select a make and model at GCBC’s Sales Stats page. These tables are sortable, so you can rank luxury brand cars any which way you like. Suggestions on how GCBC should break down segments can be passed on through the Contact page.
Click Column Headers To Sort • February 2017 • March 2016 • January 2016 • February 2015
|
Small/Entry
Luxury Car |
February
2016 |
February
2015 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
2015
YTD |
%
Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1500
|
959 | 56.4% | 2733 | 1951 | 40.1% | |
|
3080
|
3419 | -9.9% | 5319 | 6311 | -15.7% | |
|
—
|
4 | -100% | — | 10 | -100% | |
|
2183
|
2279 | -4.2% | 4331 | 4662 | -7.1% | |
|
Audi A4 ^
|
1951
|
1924 | 1.4% | 3425 | 3714 | -7.8% |
|
Audi A5 *
|
602
|
831 | -27.6% | 1117 | 1674 | -33.3% |
|
1085
|
523 | 107% | 1795 | 898 | 99.9% | |
|
4595
|
6004 | -23.5% | 7882 | 10,747 | -26.7% | |
|
2683
|
2744 | -2.2% | 4515 | 5349 | -15.6% | |
|
248
|
1089 | -77.2% | 430 | 1759 | -75.6% | |
|
1591
|
2028 | -21.5% | 2658 | 3785 | -29.8% | |
|
16
|
1643 | -99.0% | 26 | 2672 | -99.0% | |
|
3364
|
3649 | -7.8% | 6278 | 6615 | -5.1% | |
|
172
|
346 | -50.3% | 304 | 812 | -62.6% | |
|
762
|
978 | -22.1% | 1384 | 1983 | -30.2% | |
|
2961
|
3383 | -12.5% | 5139 | 6758 | -24.0% | |
|
920
|
984 | -6.5% | 1675 | 1831 | -8.5% | |
|
37
|
109 | -66.1% | 95 | 349 | -72.8% | |
|
6102
|
7072 | -13.7% | 11,181 | 13,308 | -16.0% | |
|
1474
|
2606 | -43.4% | 4642 | 5097 | -8.9% | |
|
823
|
1203 | -31.6% | 1278 | 2574 | -50.3% | |
|
42
|
— | — | 80 | — | — | |
|
252
|
339 | -25.7% | 399 | 631 | -36.8% | |
|
154
|
70 | 120% | 230 | 98 | 135% | |
|
—
|
—
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
Total
|
36,597
|
44,186 | -17.2% | 66,916 | 83,588 | -19.9% |
|
Midsize Luxury Car
|
February
2016 |
February
2015 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
2015
YTD |
%
Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
103
|
173 | -40.5% | 201 | 349 | -42.4% | |
|
—
|
22 | -100% | — | 40 | -100% | |
|
1064
|
1282 | -17.0% | 1905 | 2484 | -23.3% | |
|
429
|
229 | 87.3% | 861 | 514 | 67.5% | |
|
2758
|
3606 | -23.5% | 6553 | 6965 | -5.9% | |
|
1461
|
1438 | 1.6% | 2474 | 3136 | -21.1% | |
|
1813
|
1960 | -7.5% | 3626 | 3842 | -5.6% | |
|
286
|
207 | 38.2% | 457 | 427 | 7.0% | |
|
494
|
707 | -30.1% | 986 | 1334 | -26.1% | |
|
790
|
703 | 12.4% | 1516 | 1347 | 12.5% | |
|
83
|
62 | 33.9% | 151 | 181 | -16.6% | |
|
3826
|
4192 | -8.7% | 7226 | 8272 | -12.6% | |
|
1167
|
1851 | -37.0% | 2465 | 3530 | -30.2% | |
|
599
|
559 | 7.2% | 1137 | 1204 | -5.6% | |
|
2128
|
1834 | 16.0% | 4074 | 3664 | 11.2% | |
|
2700
|
2752 | -1.9% | 5490 | 7494 | -26.7% | |
|
43
|
70 | -38.6% | 84 | 282 | -70.2% | |
|
287
|
316 | -9.2% | 539 | 646 | -16.6% | |
|
—
|
—
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
Total
|
17,903
|
21,963 | -18.5% | 39,745 | 45,711 | -13.1% |
Source: Automakers & ANDC
* vehicle also displayed in another GCBC segment breakdown
^ A4 includes Allroad, without which A4 sales were up 4.8% to 1827 in February; down 4.7% to 3152 YTD.
° Mercedes-Benz USA began combining E-Class and CLS-Class sales with their February report.
GCBC isn’t here to break down segments, an impossible task for any group, but to display sales data for the sake of comparison. The more ways sales data can be displayed, the better. This explains why you’ll see the Acura ILX here but also with mainstream cars like the Buick Verano, too, and the Audi A5 is also displayed with coupes and convertibles… because readers have wanted it both ways. Hyundai USA, not GoodCarBadCar, chooses to combine sales figures for the Genesis sedan and Genesis Coupe, forcing us to include the Genesis with volume-brand cars on pricing grounds before we even get to the “brand status” issue. The K900, Equus, and XTS are here not because of their size but because of their price points, their lack of direct comparability with the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. You can always find the sales results for EVERY vehicle and form your own competitive sets by using the All Vehicle Rankings posts.
RECOMMENDED READING
Small & Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America – February 2017
Small & Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America – March 2016 YTD
Small & Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America – January 2016
Small & Midsize Luxury Car Sales In America – February 2015
Top 20 Best-Selling Cars In America – February 2016
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – February 2016
Large Luxury Car Sales In America – February 2016 YTD