Audi Sets July Record With A 4% Gain In Sales

Audi achieved its best July in the brand’s U.S. history. The previous July record was set in 2015 with sales of 17,654 vehicles. Year-to-date sales have risen 3.6 percent to 115,298 vehicles sold.

Sales of Audi SUV models remained strong in July, with a 15 percent increase over last July and a 22 percent increase year-to-date. The Q3 posted a sales record of 1,819 vehicles for the month, a 56 percent increase over July 2015. Sales of the Q5 rose 2.8 percent to 4,833 vehicles for the month. Q7 sales rose 20 percent from last July to 2,322 vehicles, with an increase of 63 percent year-to-date.

July results were also bolstered by solid demand for the A3 and A4 models. The A3 model line posted 3,038 sales for July, including 349 deliveries of the A3 Sportback e-tron. The e-tron has recorded sales of 2,291 vehicles year-to-date. The A4 posted sales of 2,612 vehicles, an 18 percent increase for the month and an 11 percent increase year-to-date.

“A robust dealer network has helped us successfully launch and promote several of our most important models this year and that’s strengthened our sales amid the tightening premium market,” said Mark Del Rosso, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Audi of America. “Consumers and the marketplace have rewarded the brand with continued growth, which we do not take for granted.”

ilovecar2015 - 8/2/2016 11:23:58 AM

+3 Boost

It's amazed me how well the Q5 sells despite its age. I guess the demographic of CUV/SUV doesn't care about updates.

TheSteve - 8/2/2016 11:52:31 AM

-1 Boost

re: " I guess the demographic of CUV/SUV doesn't care about updates."

Alternative possibilities *might* include:
- It's a good product
- It's buyers prefer what it offers compared to the industry's "latest and greatest" whizbangery, and change for the sake of change
- It's not the best at any one thing, but it does well across the board
- Styling isn't polarizing, like many new designs
- Good value for the dollar (i.e., "affordable" luxury?)

Suggestion: Rather than guessing, ask Q5 owners why they bought their car.

GermanNut - 8/2/2016 11:24:01 AM

+1 Boost

Audi's Q3, Q5 and Q7 SUVs each increased their sales for the month of July and each are up YTD. The Q3 and Q7 have seen exceptionally strong sales performance. Overall, Audi's SUVs have seen excellent sales success and this is important because more U.S. buyers are buying SUVs instead of sedans.


Even the Q5, which is about to be replaced with a newer model, has managed to increase sales. This bodes well for Audi given that the Q5 is its best-selling model in the U.S.

The new A4 has delivered a nice boost as well.

Audi could really see a huge sales increase next year if its SUVs continue their strong sales results and its sedans are overhauled starting with the technology-packed and aggressively designed upcoming A8.

IamEvilHomer - 8/2/2016 1:45:23 PM

+1 Boost

q5 2018 (new body is scheduled for May 2017 so it's not about to be replaced yet. The 2016-2017 current model is a lot of car for the money

GermanNut - 8/2/2016 11:52:31 AM

+1 Boost

Even more importantly, Audi's 67th consecutive months of sales increases means that it has consistently been gaining market share. A company always wants to gain market share.

Many people criticize Audi's monthly sales streak because it still trails BMW and Mercedes-Benz by a large amount in the U.S. market, but they fail to understand the meaning of such an accomplishment. For any brand, regardless of its sales, increasing sales every single month for almost 6 straight years is not easy.

It means that your products are increasingly compelling to buyers to the point where more and more people are buying them every month - a great position to be in.

hangtime010 - 8/2/2016 1:09:06 PM

+1 Boost

I have to agree with GN. The accomplishment of increasing sales for 67 consecutive months, albeit some months with small gains, is still impressive and quite a feat when the line-up's been criticized for being the "same shape in different sizes".
Consider that in 1996 Audi sold less than 28k in the U.S., while M-B had over 90K and BMW over 105K. At that time Audi was debating to pull out of the U.S. market. So gotta give them credit for what they've done.
Sales increases of both the new A4 and Q7 are showing that the styling are acceptable.
I wonder if the upcoming, (somewhat) newly designed A5/S5 will do the same?

GermanNut - 8/2/2016 1:45:19 PM

+1 Boost

I believe the new A5/S5 should also see a sales increase considering Audi applied the same changes to the A5 that it did to the new A4 and the new A4 has seen a nice gain.

When the new Q5 comes out next year, Audi should expect a huge increase that is similar to what the new Q7 is currently experiencing. Add to that momentum a new A8 and Audi's monthly sales streak looks set to continue past the 72-month mark.

cidflekken - 8/2/2016 3:17:46 PM

+2 Boost

Well, I hate to burst this "sales gain" bubble, but the YTD gains for the A4 came primarily from the first half of the year, before the new A4 even got to dealerships. Yes, it saw a nice gain in July over 2015, but the 2015 number was a 20% drop from 2014, so maybe not as impressive as it seems. Basically, it appears the A4's numbers are normalizing vs. actually gaining new buyers.

MDarringer - 8/2/2016 5:10:13 PM

+2 Boost

The A3 is the A4's biggest enemy.