The midsized SUV segments outperforms the overall US passenger car market at -12% in the first half of 2022. With just over 1.4 million deliveries, midsized crossovers now make up 20.8% of the market, up 1.4 percentage points on the same period last year. In Q2, the calss was down 15% in an overall market down 21%.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee retook the class lead last year and starts 2022 on top as well. Its 25% jump in deliveries, thanks to the new generation and the addition of the 3-row L version helps it distance the Toyota Highlander which is down 19% after a 36% decline in the second quarter. In Q2, the Ford Explorer was the best seller in the class, but by fewer than 1,000 deliveries over the Grand Cherokee, which still has an almost 32,000 sales advantage over the former class leader. The Jeep Wrangler is knocked off the podium position it held in Q1 and is down 16% year-to-date. It still sells about 50% more than its direct competitor Toyota 4Runner which is down just 4% this year. And the duo’s other rival Ford Bronco delivered just 700 fewer units than the 4Runner in the second quarter. This battle of the off-roaders is turning interesting! The Ford Edge shows impressive strength at +31% for the half (and +46% in Q2), distancing the Kia Telluride (+3%) and moving ahead of the Honda Pilot (-39%) and Chevrolet Traverse (-47%). Both of the latter lost half of their sales or more in Q2. The Telluride’s sibling Hyundai Palisade is also impressively stable as further evidence that the South-Korean brands have so far been best at avoiding supply shortages. The Subaru Ascent (+9%) is back ahead of the Volkswagen Atlas (-40%), while the GMC Acadia does even worse at -47%). In contrast, the new generation Nissan Pathfinder helps the nameplate to a 79% jump in deliveries, moving past the Dodge Durango (-47%), Honda Passport (-25%) and Toyota Venza (-48%), all three of which are on a downward trajectory with even worse declines in the second quarter. Potentially cannibalized by the succes of the Pathfinder, the Nissan Murano is down 38% year-to-date, after a 52% decline in Q2. The Mazda CX-9, Buick Enclave and Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport also almost half of their sales in Q2.
Luxury midsized SUVs are down 12%, which means their share of the segment remains virtually stable at just over 20%. Best selling luxury model is of course still the Lexus RX with sales down just 5% and up to an overall #8 spot. The BMW X5 is up 21% to jump into 2nd place and 15th overall, ahead of the Mercedes-Benz GLE, down 9%. That knocks the Acura MDX down into 4th place and #21 overall at -36%. The MDX lost almost half of its sales in Q2. The Lexus GX (-9%) drops back behind the Volvo XC90, down 14%. The Lincoln Nautilus (+4%) outsells its stablemate Aviator (-8%) as both beat their domestic rivals Tesla Model X and Cadillac XT6 (-29%). A 48% decline for the Audi Q7 means it’s under pressure from sibling Porsche Cayenne which outsold it in Q2. The Audi Q8 also drops by half, and so do the Mercedes-Benz G-Class and Land Rover Discovery. The Discovery has become obsolete upon the arrival of the Land Rover Defender, while the recent crashes in the stock market and crypto currencies, as well as continued rising gas prices may be causing the 83% drop in deliveries for the G-Class. The Infiniti QX60 and BMW X6 do relatively well at +34% and +17% respectively year-to-date. Newcomer BMW iX found just under 1,100 new homes in the seccond quarter, closing in on its rivals Audi e-tron and Audi e-tron Sportback.
US midsized SUV sales 2022-H1
| Midsized SUV segment | 2022-H1 | 2021-H1 | Change | 2022 Share | 2021 Share | 2022-Q2 | Change | |
| 1 | Jeep Grand Cherokee | 134.369 | 107.924 | 25% | 9,5% | 6,7% | 59.252 | 12% |
| 2 | Toyota Highlander | 117.403 | 144.380 | -19% | 8,3% | 8,9% | 51.377 | -36% |
| 3 | Ford Explorer | 102.917 | 118.241 | -13% | 7,3% | 7,3% | 60.181 | 14% |
| 4 | Jeep Wrangler | 99.497 | 118.666 | -16% | 7,0% | 7,3% | 53.946 | -22% |
| 5 | Toyota 4Runner | 66.829 | 69.949 | -4% | 4,7% | 4,3% | 31.922 | -2% |
| 6 | Hyundai Santa Fe | 57.895 | 63.110 | -8% | 4,1% | 3,9% | 32.313 | -6% |
| 7 | Ford Bronco | 54.842 | 801 | 6747% | 3,9% | 0,0% | 31.269 | 3804% |
| 8 | Lexus RX | 53.769 | 56.644 | -5% | 3,8% | 3,5% | 26.974 | -6% |
| 9 | Ford Edge | 51.453 | 39.355 | 31% | 3,6% | 2,4% | 25.041 | 46% |
| 10 | Kia Telluride | 46.893 | 45.438 | 3% | 3,3% | 2,8% | 24.817 | 5% |
| 11 | Honda Pilot | 46.435 | 76.560 | -39% | 3,3% | 4,7% | 22.446 | -50% |
| 12 | Chevrolet Traverse | 44.306 | 83.431 | -47% | 3,1% | 5,2% | 20.842 | -54% |
| 13 | Hyundai Palisade | 43.637 | 43.501 | 0% | 3,1% | 2,7% | 22.612 | 1% |
| 14 | Kia Sorento | 39.045 | 48.313 | -19% | 2,8% | 3,0% | 21.122 | -26% |
| 15 | BMW X5 | 35.526 | 29.244 | 21% | 2,5% | 1,8% | 19.049 | 15% |
| 16 | Mercedes-Benz GLE | 32.448 | 35.705 | -9% | 2,3% | 2,2% | 16.458 | -14% |
| 17 | Subaru Ascent | 30.931 | 28.373 | 9% | 2,2% | 1,8% | 16.233 | 17% |
| 18 | Volkswagen Atlas | 26.641 | 44.069 | -40% | 1,9% | 2,7% | 17.595 | -29% |
| 19 | GMC Acadia | 24.666 | 46.222 | -47% | 1,7% | 2,9% | 15.330 | -42% |
| 20 | Nissan Pathfinder | 24.278 | 13.552 | 79% | 1,7% | 0,8% | 15.303 | 229% |
| 21 | Acura MDX | 23.610 | 36.791 | -36% | 1,7% | 2,3% | 10.052 | -49% |
| 22 | Dodge Durango | 20.439 | 38.415 | -47% | 1,4% | 2,4% | 6.090 | -66% |
| 23 | Honda Passport | 20.102 | 26.694 | -25% | 1,4% | 1,7% | 9.628 | -36% |
| 24 | Toyota Venza | 18.666 | 35.834 | -48% | 1,3% | 2,2% | 7.830 | -65% |
| 25 | Volvo XC90 | 17.232 | 19.981 | -14% | 1,2% | 1,2% | 10.283 | -12% |
| 26 | Nissan Murano | 16.799 | 27.019 | -38% | 1,2% | 1,7% | 7.396 | -52% |
| 27 | Mazda CX-9 | 16.180 | 20.265 | -20% | 1,1% | 1,3% | 5.717 | -47% |
| 28 | Buick Enclave | 14.910 | 25.713 | -42% | 1,1% | 1,6% | 7.885 | -48% |
| 29 | Lexus GX | 13.956 | 15.406 | -9% | 1,0% | 1,0% | 6.701 | -13% |
| 30 | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | 13.771 | 25.828 | -47% | 1,0% | 1,6% | 8.083 | -44% |
| 31 | Lincoln Nautilus / MKX | 11.855 | 11.427 | 4% | 0,8% | 0,7% | 6.766 | 12% |
| 32 | Lincoln Aviator | 10.950 | 11.856 | -8% | 0,8% | 0,7% | 5.983 | 4% |
| 33 | Tesla Model X (est.) | 10.300 | 6.206 | 66% | 0,7% | 0,4% | 7.000 | 536% |
| 34 | Cadillac XT6 | 9.379 | 13.141 | -29% | 0,7% | 0,8% | 5.599 | -22% |
| 35 | Audi Q7 | 9.183 | 17.705 | -48% | 0,6% | 1,1% | 5.221 | -48% |
| 36 | Porsche Cayenne | 8.566 | 10.234 | -16% | 0,6% | 0,6% | 5.913 | -2% |
| 37 | Genesis GV80 | 7.605 | 10.077 | -25% | 0,5% | 0,6% | 4.346 | -23% |
| 38 | Land Rover Defender | 6.923 | 8.313 | -17% | 0,5% | 0,5% | 2.823 | -8% |
| 39 | Range Rover Sport | 6.618 | 10.022 | -34% | 0,5% | 0,6% | 2.418 | -32% |
| 40 | Infiniti QX60 | 5.781 | 4.306 | 34% | 0,4% | 0,3% | 3.245 | 227% |
| 41 | BMW X6 | 5.399 | 4.612 | 17% | 0,4% | 0,3% | 2.631 | 2% |
| 42 | Audi e-tron | 4.738 | 5.122 | -7% | 0,3% | 0,3% | 2.710 | 64% |
| 43 | Audi Q8 | 4.207 | 8.625 | -51% | 0,3% | 0,5% | 2.782 | -45% |
| 44 | Mercedes-Benz G-class | 2.386 | 4.571 | -48% | 0,2% | 0,3% | 473 | -83% |
| 45 | Audi e-tron Sportback | 1.880 | 1.762 | 7% | 0,1% | 0,1% | 1.228 | 35% |
| 46 | BMW iX | 1.428 | 0 | New | 0,1% | 0,0% | 1.081 | New |
| 47 | Land Rover Discovery | 684 | 1.392 | -51% | 0,0% | 0,1% | 184 | -83% |
| Segment total | 1.417.327 | 1.614.795 | -12% | 724.150 | -15% |
Source: Manufacturers.