The upper class segment is the only class in the US with lower sales in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period of last year. In an overall market up 29%, upper class sedans and coupes now make up 0.2% of the US passenger car market, down from 0.3% in the first half of 2020. 
One of the big reasons for this slight decline is the fact that the traditional leader Mercedes-Benz S-Class is in the middle of a model changeover. The S-Class is down 66% and drops to fifth place in 2021. New leader is the all-electric Porsche Taycan, up more than fivefold to almost 5,400 deliveries, giving it a share of 31.8% of the class, even more than the S-Class had last year. The BMW 7-Series is up 37% to improve its share to 23.3% while the Lexus LS is up 58% to jump onto the podium and gain 5 percentage points of market share. Cannibalized by the Taycan, the Porsche Panamera is down 16% but outsold the LS in the second quarter. The Audi A8 and Genesis G90 even outsold the Mercedes-Benz S-Class in Q2. As soon as the latter’s new generation starts deliveries, together with its all-electric version EQS, it will be storming back up the charts again. BMW will soon follow with an i7 and even Genesis is working on an electric G90. Local hero Cadillac CT6 is on its way out and Kia has already axed the K900 for the North American market as well. Jaguar was working on an all-electric new XJ, but this model has been killed before it hit the market.
US upper class sedan sales 2021 – first half
| Upper class | 2021-H1 | 2020-H1 | Change | 2021 Share | 2020 Share | |
| 1 | Porsche Taycan | 5.367 | 1.039 | 417% | 31,8% | 6,1% |
| 2 | BMW 7-series | 3.915 | 2.848 | 37% | 23,2% | 16,6% |
| 3 | Lexus LS | 2.251 | 1.426 | 58% | 13,3% | 8,3% |
| 4 | Porsche Panamera | 1.716 | 2.055 | -16% | 10,2% | 12,0% |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz S-class | 1.416 | 4.183 | -66% | 8,4% | 24,5% |
| 6 | Audi A8 / S8 | 1.113 | 1.017 | 9% | 6,6% | 5,9% |
| 7 | Genesis G90 | 862 | 1.147 | -25% | 5,1% | 6,7% |
| 8 | Cadillac CT6 | 171 | 2.550 | -93% | 1,0% | 14,9% |
| 9 | Kia K900 | 70 | 125 | -44% | 0,4% | 0,7% |
| 10 | Jaguar XJ | 14 | 717 | -98% | 0,1% | 4,2% |
| Segment total | 16.895 | 17.107 | -1% |
Source: Manufacturers.