BMW Sales Leap Forward 30.2% - Mini Sales Rise 8.7%

"November is normally a tough month but we increased our sales momentum thanks to strong demand for our all-wheel-drive vehicles, the X5 and X6 in particular, and now that it's available, the 5 Series with AWD," said Jim O'Donnell, President and CEO of BMW of North America, LLC.  "The overall market shows signs of improvement with consumer confidence increasing slightly but our dealers know they have to work for every sale and that work is paying off."  

BMW Brand Sales

Sales of BMW brand vehicles in November increased 30.2 percent for a total of 20,297 vehicles from the 15,438 units sold in November of last year.  Year-to-date, BMW sales are up 11.8 percent to 196,833 vehicles from the 176,104 units sold in the same period of 2009.

In November, best performing vehicles included the 5 Series, up 58 percent to 5,042 units, 1 Series, up 40.7 percent to 1,019 units, and the 3 Series, up 36.6 percent to 8,928 units.  The SAV segment continues to perform very well with the X5, up 24 percent to 3,436 units and the X6, up 30.8 percent to 561 units.

BMW Pre-Owned Vehicles

Sales of BMW's used vehicles (including certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 6.5 percent to 12,580 vehicles from the 11,815 units sold in November of last year.  Year-to-date, used vehicle sales were up 5 percent to 153,048 units from the 145,763 units sold in the same period of 2009.

MINI Brand Sales

MINI USA reported sales of 2,786 automobiles, an increase of 8.7 percent from the 2,564 cars sold last year.  Year-to-date, MINI USA is reporting sales of 41,324 automobiles, a decrease of 1 percent from the 41,736 cars sold in the same period of 2009.


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Milton - 12/1/2010 2:40:59 PM

-4 Boost

Mercedes S-Class : 1,127
BMW 7 Series : 803

0to60 - 12/1/2010 3:06:30 PM

+2 Boost

ok

car750i - 12/1/2010 3:07:58 PM

+8 Boost

C class- 3930
3 series-8928

E Class-4986
5 Series-5042

M-3470
X5-3436

SLK-110
Z4-167

Both brands are selling very well.

Yonder7 - 12/1/2010 3:06:19 PM

+2 Boost

Yes but overall is doing great. However the 5 series is not up to what I expecting. Let see whats happen when CLS start selling in US.

enthusiastx11 - 12/1/2010 7:10:09 PM

+7 Boost

you were expecting better than a 58 percent increase? 5,000 units a month is class leading--and at premium prices to its competitors.

JRobUSC - 12/1/2010 9:38:07 PM

+7 Boost

ditto enthusiastx11. Yonder7, have you compared the leases for an E-class versus a 5-Series? A decked out 550xi is about $1300/mo. I went looking for a decked out 535xi and it was $700/mo... with $7k out of pocket. Mercedes is giving away E-classes for hundreds less per month, and they STILL were outsold by the 5-Series. The fact that BMW increased 5-Series sales 58% over November 2010, when BMW was flat giving away the last of the previous generation 5's, is frankly pretty amazing. And that's without even having the 528xi available.

What were you expecting?

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 12:23:43 AM

+7 Boost

lexus dominates in the entry level (and hence, moves volume), but sells very little in the mid-luxury and high end.

RX, ES and IS sales make up 86% of the brand (per lexus own sales numbers in another post). those cars typically roll out the door in the mid to high $30s. lexus doesn't play much with the big boys in the $50-150k segment.

pchera01 - 12/2/2010 2:50:36 AM

+5 Boost

I really don't think BMW or MB cares about selling too many cheap ass cars and get the title...
if u look at the lease deals on BMW went up in month of november, still they did very good
on the other hand Lexus add discount to move their vehicles and still came short...
someone may give u more detail about BMW lease on month of Nov, they did went up

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 11:53:56 AM

+4 Boost

cigar:

so you believe that people are willing to pay MORE to drive stripped down BMWs vs. well-equipped lexus?

lexus cars are very well-equipped as standard. they don't have many options. mercedes and bmw are NOTORIOUS for stripping down cars to get the base prices low. my 2008 3-series, for example, was $51,000 well optioned. about $10,000 more that a comparably equipped IS350 at the time.

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 12:05:10 PM

+4 Boost

enthusiastx11

and, cigar, since YOU like to state things without data to back you up. facts are fun. here are a few examples:

IS350 base: $38,570 (standard with auto, leather, power seats and host of other things)

335i base: $41,100 (manual, no leather, manual seats, etc--just those basic options would bring the price to over $45,000--and it flys quickly over $50,000)

-----

GS350 base: $46,000 (very well equipped, top option package is $4800 and brings the car to nearly $51,000)

535i base: $49,600 (i was careful with the options on my 2011 and it was just $63,000, but prices fly over $70,000 very quickly if you keep checking boxes)

JRobUSC - 12/2/2010 2:24:00 PM

+5 Boost

"And what total percentage of BMW sales are the "x" models, really? Yeah, that's what I thought."

A lot, actually. The new 5-Series was averaging about 3500 a month until all-wheel drive came out last month. Now they're over 5000. And that's without the entry level 528xi, which would be the volume leader if BMW hadn't been stupid enough to delay it for a year. So... yeah, that's what I thought. And the lease thing I'm not even going to get into with you. The leases on an E are 10-20% less than a comparable 5. It's simple fact, go to a dealer and find out for yourself.

car750i - 12/2/2010 11:55:22 AM

+5 Boost

Haha good one. The new X3 didnt hit the show rooms yet. Germany's budget brand would go to Audi, over 50% of their cars are FWD economy cars powered by VW 4 cylinders.

JRobUSC - 12/2/2010 2:40:31 PM

+5 Boost

uh... what? BMW has become the most expensive car in just about every class they sell in. The 3-Series costs more than a C-class, A4, IS, or G. A 5-Series costs more than an E-class, A6, GS, M, or XF. A 7-Series costs more than an A8 or XJ, and runs neck and neck with an S-class. An X3 costs more than a GLK or Q5. An X5 costs more than an ML (often more than a GL, especially to lease) or Q7. The Z4 costs more than the SLK and TT.

Maybe I'm not remembering my econ class properly from college, but I'm pretty sure being the most expensive to buy and lease is sort of the opposite of becoming "the budget brand". The only brand that routinely charges more for everything is Porsche. I guess by your logic then Porsche is the real budget brand, since in your world that's apparently what charging the most means.

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 12:03:01 PM

+5 Boost

and, cigar, since YOU like to state things without data to back you up. facts are fun. here are a few examples:

IS350 base: $38,570 (standard with auto, leather, power seats and host of other things)

335i base: $41,100 (manual, no leather, manual seats, etc--just those basic options would bring the price to over $45,000--and it flys quickly over $50,000)

-----

GS350 base: $46,000 (very well equipped, top option package is $4800 and brings the car to nearly $51,000)

535i base: $49,600 (i was careful with the options on my 2011 and it was just $63,000, but prices fly over $70,000 very quickly if you keep checking boxes)

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 6:55:31 PM

+2 Boost

that's all nice, blackdynamite, but....

1. the RX350 with the TOP option package is $47,000. so all the ones on the lot are fully optioned? (try finding an X5 for under $60,000, high $80s fully optioned with the V8). newsflash: cars that cost 30% less sell more volume. and their not competitors because lexus says so.

2. the LS doesn't match the S or 7 on style, performance, handling, technology or almost any other matter. and it's 30% less. newflash2: cars that cost 30% less sell more volume.

3. a $2,000 difference in incentives is irrelevant. what matter is FINAL SALES PRICE, not lowball MSRPs. BMW across the board (and more mercedes except the C) sell at HUGE premiums to their competitors.

FACT: lexus dominates in entry luxury volume with 86% of lexus cars in that class (RX, ES, IS) while BMW and mercedes sell at enormous premiums and dominate the mid-luxury and high end of the market.

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 6:58:48 PM

+2 Boost

furthermore, you show a complete lack of understanding of the high-end market by calling out BMW's 50+ models (vs. lexus dozen or so) as a fault. luxury car buyers want unique cars that are personalized to their specifications. they don't want a silver RX with option package "C" that 14 of their neighbors have. customization is key to profitability in the luxury market and buyers will pay a large premium for something unique.

care to expound upon lexus' profitability vs. all the germans?

merc07 - 12/2/2010 4:49:12 PM

+3 Boost

bmw prices are more expensive than mercedes in the 3 series range. Once you get to the 5 series e-class catagory they are about the same. Outside of this range mercedes are far more expensive and sell a lot more cars in the upper marque.

enthusiastx11 - 12/2/2010 7:00:28 PM

+2 Boost

that is true of the S-class and CL-class--they're more expensive. the 3 and the 5 are far more than either the C or the E. i have a 2011 5. go price them out with the same equipment and the bmw is notably more.

merc07 - 12/4/2010 2:19:24 PM

0 Boost

when fully optioned a 550 and e550 are both going to be about the same price. The 5 series is not far more than any e. c to 3 yes. but e to 5 now. moreover, the 5 series has been out for all of 3 months. The e has been out for quite sometime now. and still is posting very good numbers. I wonder what happens when mercedes introduces their new engines.

enthusiastx11 - 12/5/2010 2:09:19 PM

+1 Boost

it's only about an $11,000 difference. $88,500 vs. $77,200