Bmw outsells Audi and becomes the top-selling premium brand

Nice job BMW! Sales should get stronger in the second quarter with the new 5 hitting the market soon. Also the new x3, 6 series, and 3 series are just around the corner.

lol around the corner.... don't you just hate how you can not tell what is behind the new camos??? If I knew that the new 3 series coupe and 5 series was gonna have tail lights this sexy hell Audi would never have been close to being on my list

And the new 1 series!

Audi has the new A1 and A8 coming out too! With BMW just barely outselling Audi for the quarter, this year's global luxury sales race should be one to remember.

I think the new 5 series is the car that will make the difference this year.

A1 might sell well but not sure How well the A8 can do. Sales of Big luxury limo is never that big and can hardly affect the overall sales of a brand. And its hard to imagine that the A8 can outsell 7 series and S class.
I think the 5 series on the other hand will improve the already stunning BMW sales, Plus the new X3 just around the corner, new 1&3 series coming out in 2011/12, BMW seems unstoppable for the next few years still.(especially the New 3 series, we all know how big this car can be)
Even With new A1,A6,A7 coming out soon, I think Audi will still be the one who's chasing, at least for the next few years.

Where are all the Audi Losers now?

The are still here. The problem with that figures is the Audi is on a higher percentage gain overall. So I would expect Audi to keep it neck and neck until the end of the year.

Anyways props to BMW for the first qtr....

The Audi "losers" don't care. It's not about how many cars a company sells. It's about how profitable they are. Audi was considerably more profitable in 2009 than BMW.

More profitable? Meaning they can sell less car for more money. Now that's something worth bragging about.

lol you mean Audi can turn what is in us dollars a $12,000 VW into an overpriced A1 and make a whole line of cars under the same platform oops im sorry the TT uses the golf hmm what $16,000 car and the Q7 the last generation toureg.....I wonder how much of that affects profits...versus an independendent company...

I did not realize Audi was considered premium.

You must be living in a cave.

As an admitted two-car BMW owner, I have to say that Audi is on track whereas BMW seems to have lost its way.

For every one of you that BMW loses, they win 2 or 3 new fans (given that sales volumes are increasing to record levels).
All my sons and I now drive BMWs, whereas 10 years ago, none of us did.
So there are winners and there are losers.
I guess you're in the loser category.

bmw lost it's way? a multi-year stream of fantastic new models--of which 2011 will be a new peak (X5, 5-series, is models, additional 7s, etc). over 1MM cars a year sold. consistent wonderful driving experience across every model from coupes to sedans to SUVs to convertibles. niche models to please every unique taste. tremendous customer loyalty. industry-leading profitability per car.

yeah, they've lost their way. lol

What people fail to recognize is this fact:

Audi's global sales increase for Q1: 26%

BMW brand's global sales increase for Q1: 14%

Audi has not only managed to clearly outpace the competition in terms of percentage increase in global sales this year, but it also managed to clearly outpace the competition in terms of smallest percentage decrease for 2009. In 2008, Audi was the only premium brand to record a global sales increase while BMW and Mercedes-Benz both saw declines of at least 5%.

This trend will not change either. With huge-volume products right around the corner such as Audi's brand-new A1, brand-new Q3, and re-designed A6, Audi might surpass BMW by 2011.

The error in your logic is because you fail to mention what BMW has under their sleeves. An all new 3 series, the new 5 series, the X1, and the X3. All of them are hot sellers.

I also didn't realise Audi was considered Premium - You can't polish a turd!!

M53R, yes, BMW does have very high volume products (new 3er, new 5er, X1, and X3) set to launch soon. Audi also has very high volume products (A1, Q3, A6) set to launch soon.

I believe the sales success of these new, high-volume vehicles will determine if BMW or Audi wins the global sales race.

This is not surprising. When you water down your brand and start offering all these variants of autos you are bound to increase #'s. The X6, upcoming 5GT, the multitude of 3-series now available, and the upcoming X1. It's not surprising at all that they could maintain outselling as they offer more and more to others outside of their base. The 3-series used to be a lust car for me, but now it has gotten too mainstream.

I own an Audi A4 and love it over the BMW 3 series. BMW does make a great car and it handles well but I rather drive a car that only a few can appreciate than a car built for the masses and because of the emblem. Just about every 16 year old on the block is driving one. BMW is losing their image with their quality and customer respect. Audi believes in their car and has done away with free maintenance. BMW would not sell as many cars if they took that away, yet Audi sales are going up. I want to drive my car rather than drive a loaner due to problems and constant nagging adjustments. Look at the 150k recalls BMW recently reported. Look out BMW that light in your rearview mirror may not be Audi anymore....look forward because they are passing you up and have has put "truth in engineering." By the way, Audi is a premium brand and competes with MB and BMW for those who have not done their research.

Wrong on so many levels one Audi has a free maintenance program, 2 the A4 is a car for the masses and uses a econo cars engine for that matter, how many Audis have poor resale values along with poor reliability and for how many years now (dodging a need for a recall doesnt count as reliable), having electronic issues isnt reliable, being listed as one of the worse cars for reliability "A6" isnt again reliable or quality nor truth in anything. Truth in "platform engineering" isnt really truth nor engineering. But hey your probably to bias to understand what"truth"is, or why BMWs "engineering" makes them better...

Please do your research, if Audi had a free maintenance , then why are people being asked at the point of sale if they want to purchse it for $740 or waive it? That was done away with around 2007, guess you would not know since you dont own or drive one. Second your comments are outdated. The A4 has some of the best reliability scores since 2009. Read up on your cars before you make comments that are wrong. Plus did you not read where I said, "BMW does make a great car"? I agress the A6 has some issues but how about the flagship 7 series that is a nightmare. Enjoy your BMW as I will enjoy my A4.Do you know anything about the quattro system?