Sales of compact crossovers in the US are up 18% in the first quarter of 2021, beating the overall market, up 12%. That means the largest segment in the US grows its share of the US passenger car market to 24.7%, up from 23.3% in Q1 of 2020 and from 23.6% in all of 2020, at a volume of nearly 970,000 deliveries this quarter.
The Toyota RAV4 stays firmly on top of the ranking and keeps its share of the segment virtually stable at 11.8% thanks to sales up 17%. Its nearest two rivals perform even better, though, as the Honda CR-V is up 32% and the Nissan Rogue is up 45% thanks to the new generation. In this large field of 42 nameplates, the top-3 still hold over 30% share of the segment. The Chevrolet Equinox is on of only two losers in the top-15, at -14%, but it remains firmly ahead of the Jeep Wrangler, Subaru Forester and Subaru Outback. Those latter three are all up more than 22% for the year and leapfrogging the Ford Escape which is the other loser in the top-15 at -15%. Even the Mazda CX-5 almost outsells the Escape in Q1. The Jeep Cherokee rounds up the top-10, while the Tesla Model Y jumps to 11th, although its figures are still estimates as the company doesn’t break down its sales figures by region. The Hyundai Tucson has just been renewed and is up 40% to distance the Volkswagen Tiguan, while the all-new Ford Bronco Sport lands at #14, just ahead of hte Kia Sportage. The Jeep Compass and GMC Terrain each lose a third of their sales of last year, while the updated Buick Envision is up 51% but remains far behind in 24th place. The Ford Mustang Mach-E lands at #30.
The luxury part of the segment makes up 15.8% of total compact crossover sales so far in 2021, up from 12.1% in Q1 of 2020 and up from 14.1% in all of 2020. Most of this gain can be attributed to the thunderous arrival of the new luxury leader Tesla Model Y. It sells more than double the volume of the next best luxury crossover Mercedes-Benz GLC, up 19%. The BMW X3 jumps to third place with sales up 41%, with the Audi Q5 following close behind, up 48%. They both leapfrog the Lexus NX and Acura RDX, last year’s podium finishers now down to #5 and #6. The Cadillac XT5 is down 3% but stays ahead of the Volvo XC60 and Lincoln Corsair. The Mercedes-Benz GLB outperforms at +47% and so do the Infiniti QX50 at +54%, Porsche Macan at +69% and Alfa Romeo Stelvio at +34%.
US compact crossover sales 2021-Q1
| Compact SUV segment | 2021-Q1 | 2020-Q1 | Change | Share | |
| 1 | Toyota RAV4 | 114.255 | 97.631 | 17% | 11,8% |
| 2 | Honda CR-V | 93.766 | 71.186 | 32% | 9,7% |
| 3 | Nissan Rogue | 86.720 | 59.716 | 45% | 9,0% |
| 4 | Chevrolet Equinox | 63.218 | 73.453 | -14% | 6,5% |
| 5 | Jeep Wrangler | 49.646 | 39.668 | 25% | 5,1% |
| 6 | Subaru Forester | 47.694 | 39.080 | 22% | 4,9% |
| 7 | Subaru Outback | 41.503 | 32.615 | 27% | 4,3% |
| 8 | Ford Escape | 40.990 | 48.117 | -15% | 11,8% |
| 9 | Mazda CX-5 | 40.750 | 35.211 | 16% | 4,2% |
| 10 | Jeep Cherokee | 37.923 | 33.675 | 13% | 3,9% |
| 11 | Tesla Model Y | 33.629 | 0 | New | 3,5% |
| 12 | Hyundai Tucson | 33.147 | 23.735 | 40% | 3,4% |
| 13 | Volkswagen Tiguan L | 27.265 | 22.176 | 23% | 2,8% |
| 14 | Ford Bronco Sport | 23.356 | 0 | New | 2,4% |
| 15 | Kia Sportage | 22.417 | 20.057 | 12% | 2,3% |
| 16 | Jeep Compass | 19.959 | 29.820 | -33% | 2,1% |
| 17 | Chevrolet Blazer | 19.265 | 22.144 | -13% | 2,0% |
| 18 | GMC Terrain | 16.917 | 25.292 | -33% | 1,7% |
| 19 | Mercedes-Benz GLC | 15.569 | 13.098 | 19% | 1,6% |
| 20 | BMW X3 | 14.988 | 10.614 | 41% | 1,5% |
| 21 | Audi Q5 | 14.731 | 9.959 | 48% | 1,5% |
| 22 | Lexus NX | 14.462 | 11.309 | 28% | 1,5% |
| 23 | Acura RDX | 11.612 | 11.153 | 4% | 1,2% |
| 24 | Buick Envision | 10.476 | 6.932 | 51% | 1,1% |
| 25 | Cadillac XT5 | 8.773 | 9.023 | -3% | 0,9% |
| 26 | Volvo XC60 | 7.890 | 5.569 | 42% | 0,8% |
| 27 | Lincoln Corsair/MKC | 7.114 | 5.670 | 25% | 0,7% |
| 28 | Mercedes-Benz GLB | 7.081 | 4.820 | 47% | 2,3% |
| 29 | Dodge Journey | 6.880 | 15.152 | -55% | 0,7% |
| 30 | Ford Mustang Mach E | 6.614 | 0 | New | 0,7% |
| 31 | Infiniti QX50 | 6.425 | 4.170 | 54% | 0,7% |
| 32 | Porsche Macan | 6.391 | 3.777 | 69% | 0,7% |
| 33 | Mitsubishi Outlander | 4.360 | 13.156 | -67% | 0,5% |
| 34 | Alfa Romeo Stelvio | 2.557 | 1.913 | 34% | 0,3% |
| 35 | Land Rover Discovery Sport | 2.478 | 2.459 | 1% | 0,3% |
| 36 | Range Rover Velar | 2.136 | 3.617 | -41% | 0,2% |
| 37 | Jaguar F-Pace | 2.064 | 3.992 | -48% | 0,2% |
| 38 | BMW X4 | 1.682 | 1.788 | -6% | 0,2% |
| 39 | Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross | 1.583 | 5.184 | -69% | 0,2% |
| 40 | Jaguar I-Pace | 255 | 446 | -43% | 0,0% |
| 41 | Hyundai Nexo | 78 | 51 | 53% | 0,0% |
| 42 | Lincoln MKT | 0 | 109 | -100% | 0,0% |
| Segment total | 968.619 | 817.537 | 18% |
Source: Manufacturers.