The hottest coupes for 2008 Cars as diverse as retro Challenger, tiny ForTwo
Coupes are sexier than most sedans, and yet they don’t get as much love from American car buyers.
More than 26,000 Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedans were sold in the U.S. last year, according to CNW Marketing Research in Bandon, Ore., but only 3,672 people bought its striking two-door equivalent, the CL-Class.
Don’t get the wrong idea — the Mercedes-Benz CL-Class is not a bad car. It’s just less convenient for drivers who sometimes need to take along more than one passenger.
“Coupes in general have a limited appeal, and it’s usually restricted to sporty car buyers,” says Lonnie Miller, director of industry analysis for R.L. Polk & Co. in Southfield, Mich. “They tend to be hard to deal with, especially for those with a family or those who have multiple needs.”
That helps explain why buyers of lower-cost coupes are often younger drivers who have yet to start a family, while costlier models tend to appeal to recent empty-nesters who are drawn to something with more vehicular va-va-voom than what they drove when their kids were still living at home. According to Honda, only 12 percent of Accord sedan buyers are under 30 years old, while 39 percent of Accord coupe buyers are under 30.
A few coupes do well in the U.S., but for the most part sales of many longstanding two-doors are declining, as four-door variants grow in popularity. Last year sales of BMW’s 6 Series coupe fell 3.1 percent from the previous year; Ford Mustang sales dropped 19.2 percent; the Mitsubishi Eclipse posted a 23.6 percent sales decline; and the two-seat Cadillac XLR's sales plummeted by 45.4 percent, according to data from CNW.
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