Sales in the Premium Large segment fell by 14 percent compared to the first half 2015, recording a slightly slower contraction in the second quarter compared to the first one (11 versus 18 percent, respectively). It is reasonable to expect the segment’s fortunes to improve further still in the second half of the year, as the new Mercedes-Benz E-class is proving quite popular and may pull up sales for the segment as a whole.
Highlights for first half of 2016
- This is the first time we’ve had a crack at estimating sales of Maserati Ghibli, which if allocated the same share of Maserati’s sales as it takes in Europe (70 percent) ranks surprisingly high in 10th place, at around 3,500 units
- The only car to gain sales in the second quarter compared to the same period last year was the new Mercedes-Benz E-class (sales up by 6 percent), allowing the model to retake third spot that it lost to Hyundai Genesis in the first quarter, and almost overtake its arch-rival BMW 5-series for second in the standings
- All three models who recorded sales growth in the first quarter (Hyundai Genesis, Jaguar XF and Audi A7) saw their sales figures fall in the second quarter, though the fall wasn’t so large so as to erase the gains for the first two models
- The largest falls in sales came courtesy of theBMW 6-series (down 63 percent), the aging RWD Japanese duo Lexus GS and Infiniti Q70 (sales down 33 and 30 percent, respectively), and the equally aged Audi A6 (sales down 27 percent)
Note: “est” designates our own estimates of model sales, based on brand total sales; clicking on the model name opens the sales data page for that model; clicking year in the legend turns the display for that year on/off