Sales of large cars in Europe were down 13% in 2019 to 362,300 units, a new record low annual volume for this class, which now accounts for 2.3% of the total European car market, down from 2.7% in 2018. The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is the only nameplate to sell over 100,000 units in 2019 despite a 9% decline in deliveries. Its nearest rival BMW 5-Series drops below 100k with an 18% decline while the Audi A6 is up 16% thanks to the new generation, but is not yet able to reclaim the segment lead it held from 2005 to 2007 and in 2015, just before its rivals were renewed. The Volvo S90/V90 is in big trouble with a 28% decline in deliveries as it’s relatively dependent on its home market Sweden where tax penalties for inefficient vehicles have caused a shift to smaller cars and plug-in hybrid vehicles like Volvo offers in most of its other models.
The Tesla Model S is down by half as it feels cannibalization from the smaller and more affordable Model 3, but it stays ahead of the Mercedes-Benz CLS and Audi A7, both of which are down 8%. The Jaguar XF loses almost half of its sales volume and the BMW 6-Series is down by 50% now that the larger and more expensive 8-Series has replaced the coupe and Gran Coupe versions, leaving the 6-Series just as the GT hatchback version. The Lexus ES lands at a modest 10th place with 3,700 sales, still below its predecessor GS’s peak of over 5,000 sales in 1998 and 2006. The Maserati Ghibli is down to its lowest annual volume since its relaunch in 2014.
Also check out 2019 large car sales in the US, where non-luxury brands haven’t gone fully extinct yet, with the Dodge Charger in first place ahead of the Chevrolet Impala and the E-Class in overall third place.
| Premium large car segment | 2019 | 2018 | Change | 2019 share | 2018 share | |
| 1 | Mercedes-Benz E-Class | 107.453 | 117.906 | -9% | 29,7% | 28,5% |
| 2 | BMW 5-series | 89.326 | 108.658 | -18% | 24,7% | 26,2% |
| 3 | Audi A6 / S6 / RS6 / Allroad | 83.012 | 71.258 | 16% | 22,9% | 17,2% |
| 4 | Volvo S90/V90 | 40.315 | 56.192 | -28% | 11,1% | 13,6% |
| 5 | Tesla Model S | 8.635 | 17.386 | -50% | 2,4% | 4,2% |
| 6 | Mercedes-Benz CLS | 8.428 | 9.113 | -8% | 2,3% | 2,2% |
| 7 | Audi A7 / S7 / RS7 | 8.185 | 8.935 | -8% | 2,3% | 2,2% |
| 8 | Jaguar XF | 5.935 | 10.375 | -43% | 1,6% | 2,5% |
| 9 | BMW 6-series | 5.362 | 10.703 | -50% | 1,5% | 2,6% |
| 10 | Lexus ES | 3.764 | 217 | 1635% | 1,0% | 0,1% |
| 11 | Maserati Ghibli | 1.723 | 2.534 | -32% | 0,5% | 0,6% |
| 12 | Lexus GS | 163 | 1.066 | -85% | 0,0% | 0,3% |
| 13 | Infiniti Q70 | 21 | 64 | -67% | 0,0% | 0,0% |
| Segment total | 362.322 | 414.407 | -13% |
Click on any model to see its annual sales from 1997-2019 and monthly sales from 2016 to 2020, or use the dropdown menu in the top right of this site.
Car sales statistics are from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.
Sources: Manufacturers, ANDC, JATO Dynamics.