Luxury car sales are falling. Hard and fast. Head over heels.
But that doesn’t mean premium automakers are in particular trouble in America. Profit margins on upmarket crossovers are typically superior to that of cars, and premium automakers are selling a lot of upmarket crossovers.
U.S. Vehicle Sales Rankings By Model – February 2016 YTD
U.S. SUV/Crossover Sales Rankings By Model – February 2016 YTD
Across the sector, led by the Lexus RX, luxury SUV/crossover sales are up 16% through the first two months of 2016, a gain of 21,000 sales for the 11 premium brands which market utility vehicles.
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Of the 40 or so nameplates, including a handful of flagship models displayed in this post, only 13 are selling less often in 2016 than they were at this stage of 2016. The sharpest declines belong to the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class and Land Rover Range Rover Evoque.
The most notable improvements have been posted by the lengthened Infiniti QX50, the new Volvo XC90, the Lincoln MKX, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Land Rover LR4, Audi Q7, BMW X1, and BMW X6.
On the whole, however, improvements are the norm.
Luxury SUV and crossover sales aren’t falling.
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 now sortable, so you can rank luxury SUVs and crossovers 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
|
Compact
Luxury SUV |
February
2016 |
February
2015 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
2015
YTD |
%
Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
988
|
1046 | -5.5% | 1890 | 1919 | -1.5% | |
|
1418
|
885 | 60.2% | 3355 | 1403 | 139% | |
|
1597
|
1873 | -14.7% | 4638 | 3751 | 23.6% | |
|
—
|
—
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
Total
|
4003
|
3804 | 5.2% | 9883 | 7073 | 39.7% |
|
Small
Luxury SUV |
February
2016 |
February
2015 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
2015
YTD |
%
Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
3798
|
3862 | -1.7% | 6902 | 7379 | -6.5% | |
|
2421
|
2493 | -2.9% | 5112 | 5420 | -5.7% | |
|
3733
|
3124 | 19.5% | 5735 | 4465 | 28.4% | |
|
522
|
466 | 12.0% | 784 | 862 | -9.0% | |
|
1396
|
177 | 689% | 2390 | 365 | 555% | |
|
1324
|
— | — | 2364 | — | — | |
|
1
|
10 | -90.0% | 1 | 46 | -97.8% | |
|
823
|
1107 | -25.7% | 1756 | 2510 | -30.0% | |
|
3709
|
2666 | 39.1% | 6842 | 5478 | 24.9% | |
|
1746
|
1558 | 12.1% | 3182 | 3160 | 0.7% | |
|
3278
|
1781 | 84.1% | 6127 | 3179 | 92.7% | |
|
1012
|
624 | 62.2% | 2481 | 1420 | 74.7% | |
|
1187
|
1954 | -39.3% | 2047 | 3471 | -41.0% | |
|
—
|
—
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
Total
|
24,950
|
19,822 | 25.9% | 45,723 | 37,755 | 21.1% |
|
Midsize Luxury SUV
|
February
2016 |
February
2015 |
%
Change |
2016
YTD |
2015
YTD |
%
Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
4292
|
4553 | -5.7% | 7868 | 8934 | -11.9% | |
|
1653
|
1012 | 63.3% | 3989 | 1892 | 111% | |
|
3842
|
4149 | -7.4% | 6426 | 7363 | -12.7% | |
|
624
|
403 | 54.8% | 1009 | 836 | 20.7% | |
|
4017
|
3809 | 5.5% | 8795 | 7294 | 20.6% | |
|
2730
|
2985 | -8.5% | 5102 | 5562 | -8.3% | |
|
712
|
569 | 25.1% | 1148 | 1126 | 2.0% | |
|
1047
|
615 | 70.2% | 1893 | 1224 | 54.7% | |
|
1684
|
1827 | -7.8% | 3045 | 3579 | -14.9% | |
|
1650
|
1653 | -0.2% | 3258 | 3456 | -5.7% | |
|
7192
|
6490 | 10.8% | 14,148 | 13,059 | 8.3% | |
|
234
|
216 | 8.3% | 739 | 484 | 52.7% | |
|
2375
|
1135 | 109% | 4427 | 2493 | 77.6% | |
|
3948
|
3316 | 19.1% | 7611 | 6460 | 17.8% | |
|
1328
|
1046 | 27.0% | 2723 | 2162 | 25.9% | |
|
403
|
413 | -2.4% | 757 | 895 | -15.4% | |
|
287
|
316 | -9.2% | 539 | 646 | -16.6% | |
|
2472
|
60 | 4020% | 4847 | 98 | 4846% | |
|
—
|
—
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
Total
|
40,490
|
34,567 | 17.1% | 78,324 | 67,563 | 15.9% |
Source: Automakers & ANDC
* indicates a vehicle which is also shown in another GCBC segment breakdown
° Mercedes-Benz USA began combining GLK and GLC sales figures – and GLE and M-Class figures – in February 2016’s sales 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 you’ll see the XC70 listed with luxury cars as well as with SUVs and crossovers and the Touareg with luxury SUVs and mainstream SUVs… because readers have wanted it both ways. 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 SUV Sales In America – February 2017
Small & Midsize Luxury SUV Sales In America – March 2016 YTD
Small & Midsize Luxury SUV Sales In America – January 2016
Small & Midsize Luxury SUV Sales In America – February 2015 YTD
Top 20 Best-Selling SUVs In America – February 2016
U.S. Auto Sales Brand Rankings – February 2016 YTD
Large Luxury SUV Sales In America – February 2016 YTD