Sales in the Premium Compact SUV segment in the US rose by 15 percent in the second quarter of 2016, slightly faster than in the first quarter, resulting in an aggregate growth rate of 21 for the first half of the year. The growth is driven primarily by the success of the new BMW X1, but even the older models are doing pretty well, especially the Audi Q3. Overall, the growth rate remains the highest from among all Premium SUV segments.
Highlights from first half of 2016
- The new BMW X1 continues to be a big hit with American customers, with sales growing by 79 percent compared to Q2 2015; however, it was unable to displace Mercedes-Benz GLA as the segment leader, losing a bit of distance compared to where it ended up the first quarter (then it was 300 units behind, now its 700 behind)
- Despite holding onto the lead, not all is good news for Mercedes-Benz GLA, whose sales fell by 10 percent in the second quarter of the year
- Audi Q3 did remarkably well for a five-year-old model, with sales growing by 66 percent, suggesting that Audi may be starting to throw incentives at consumers to keep the model competitive in face of competition from the new X1
- Mini Countryman continues to lose sales, as consumers switch to newer, larger competitors
Note: 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