The midsized SUV segment in the United States continues to outperform the overall car market with sales up 21% in the first quarter of 2021. A total of just over 700,000 units were sold this quarter, giving these family haulers a share of 18% of total car sales in the US, up from 16.6 in Q1 of 2020 and up from 17.3% in all of 2020. In the top-17 best sellers, only one nameplate is down on last year, and one other sees its sales grow by less than 10% with all others gaining by double digits.
The Ford Explorer continues where it left off last year: on top of the ranking. With sales up 16%, the Explorer’s share of the class is slightly down, and the Toyota Highlander is closing in quickly, up 33% and just 1,400 sales behind the leader. Former leader Jeep Grand Cherokee is up 10% and holds on to its podium position, despite being renewed later this year. The addition of a three-row version could potentially help the Grand Cherokee reclaim the top spot by next year. The next five nameplates all gain share of the segment, with sales up 26% or more. The Hyundai Santa Fe is the best performer in the top-15 with sales up 38%. Big loser in the top-20 is the Ford Edge, down 25% and into 8th place, just ahead of the Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade twins, both up 30%. The Dodge Durango is up 15% and stays ahead of the GMC Acadia, while the Kia Sorento loses share at +9%. The Volkswagen Atlas is up 25% and outsells the Subaru Ascent which is down 7%. Newcomer Toyota Venza lands at #19, ahead of the Honda Passport and the Nissan Murano, down 27% into 22nd place. The Murano’s sibling model Pathfinder performs even worse at -51%, but that’s partially due to a model changeover. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport is up to 23rd place, ahead of the Buick Enclave and Mazda CX-9.
The luxury part of the segment makes up 21.2% of total midsized crossover sales, up from 20.3% in Q1 of 2020 but down from 21.5% in all of 2020. The Lexus RX remains ultra dominant, even claiming an overall #8 spot. And with sales up 34%, its gains share of the class. The Acura MDX reclaims the #2 spot among luxury models, thanks to sales up 90% to leapfrog the Mercedes-Benz GLE, up 41%, while the BMW X5 is down to #4 among luxury models. The Volvo XC90 follows at a distance, ahead of the Audi Q7 and Lexus GX. The Lincoln Aviator continues to outsell the Cadillac XT6, while the Tesla Model X is down to #34 overall with sales down an estimated 5%. The Genesis GV80 lands at #35, just ahead of the Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q8.
US midsized SUV sales 2021-Q1
| Midsized SUV segment | 2021-Q1 | 2020-Q1 | Change | Share | |
| 1 | Ford Explorer | 65.244 | 56.310 | 16% | 9,3% |
| 2 | Toyota Highlander | 63.831 | 47.890 | 33% | 9,1% |
| 3 | Jeep Grand Cherokee | 55.198 | 50.083 | 10% | 7,8% |
| 4 | Chevrolet Traverse | 38.037 | 30.095 | 26% | 5,4% |
| 5 | Toyota 4Runner | 37.263 | 28.072 | 33% | 5,3% |
| 6 | Honda Pilot | 31.451 | 23.898 | 32% | 4,5% |
| 7 | Hyundai Santa Fe | 28.570 | 20.658 | 38% | 4,1% |
| 8 | Lexus RX | 27.941 | 20.847 | 34% | 4,0% |
| 9 | Ford Edge | 22.150 | 29.599 | -25% | 3,1% |
| 10 | Kia Telluride | 21.854 | 16.826 | 30% | 3,1% |
| 11 | Hyundai Palisade | 21.207 | 16.333 | 30% | 3,0% |
| 12 | Dodge Durango | 20.560 | 17.805 | 15% | 2,9% |
| 13 | GMC Acadia | 19.956 | 17.686 | 13% | 2,8% |
| 14 | Kia Sorento | 19.724 | 18.055 | 9% | 2,8% |
| 15 | Volkswagen Atlas | 19.218 | 15.407 | 25% | 2,7% |
| 16 | Acura MDX | 16.988 | 8.941 | 90% | 2,4% |
| 17 | Mercedes-Benz GLE | 16.668 | 11.802 | 41% | 2,4% |
| 18 | Subaru Ascent | 14.473 | 15.624 | -7% | 2,1% |
| 19 | Toyota Venza | 13.623 | 0 | New | 1,9% |
| 20 | BMW X5 | 12.700 | 10.638 | 19% | 1,8% |
| 21 | Honda Passport | 11.610 | 7.833 | 48% | 1,6% |
| 22 | Nissan Murano | 11.523 | 15.683 | -27% | 1,6% |
| 23 | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | 11.302 | 1.129 | 901% | 1,6% |
| 24 | Buick Enclave | 10.617 | 8.752 | 21% | 1,5% |
| 25 | Mazda CX-9 | 9.386 | 7.219 | 30% | 1,3% |
| 26 | Nissan Pathfinder | 8.905 | 18.092 | -51% | 1,3% |
| 27 | Volvo XC90 | 8.334 | 6.087 | 37% | 1,2% |
| 28 | Audi Q7 | 7.714 | 6.232 | 24% | 1,1% |
| 29 | Lexus GX | 7.677 | 5.122 | 50% | 1,1% |
| 30 | Lincoln Aviator | 6.086 | 5.666 | 7% | 0,9% |
| 31 | Cadillac XT6 | 5.990 | 5.074 | 18% | 0,8% |
| 32 | Range Rover Sport | 5.742 | 5.454 | 5% | 0,8% |
| 33 | Lincoln Nautilus / MKX | 5.372 | 5.245 | 2% | 0,8% |
| 34 | Tesla Model X | 5.106 | 5.400 | -5% | 0,7% |
| 35 | Genesis GV80 | 4.432 | 0 | New | 0,6% |
| 36 | Porsche Cayenne | 4.230 | 3.822 | 11% | 0,6% |
| 37 | Audi Q8 | 3.612 | 2.436 | 48% | 0,5% |
| 38 | Audi e-tron | 3.474 | 1.711 | 103% | 0,5% |
| 39 | Infiniti QX60 | 3.315 | 9.061 | -63% | 0,5% |
| 40 | BMW X6 | 2.038 | 1.251 | 63% | 0,3% |
| 41 | Mercedes-Benz G-class | 1.709 | 1.630 | 5% | 0,2% |
| 42 | Land Rover Discovery | 393 | 2.311 | -83% | 0,1% |
| 43 | Ford Flex | 0 | 2.465 | -100% | 0,0% |
| Segment total | 705.223 | 584.244 | 21% |
Source: Manufacturers.