Sales: Notes From The Numbers - Luxury Edition

[Drew Dowdell]

Each month we chronicle the sales figures for each of the manufacturers in our Sales Figures Forum. Here are notes from the "Who's Who" for November 2013.

The luxury brands posted mixed results. Some brands posted healthy overall numbers, but when you dig in to where that growth came from, we find that it comes entirely from one or two models. Others posted more modest brand growth numbers, but spread that growth over a larger number of product lines. Generally, we feel that a 10% sales increase over a majority of a brand's product line is a healthier gain than a 20% increase owed mostly to a single model.

• The two biggest selling German luxury brands also had the most to lose. Mediocre results for both Mercedes and BMW this month. BMW's 1.7% sales increase supported entirely on the growth of just two models, the X1 and 3-series. The Mini brand was down double digits across the board. Mercedes Benz did a bit better with a 13.4% increase with that growth spread primarily over the CLA, E-Class, and M-Class models. Audi gained a similar 13%, but spread that increase over a sturdier base of 5 models and didn't suffer losses as great as the others where losses occurred.
  

• Other European Luxury manufacturers posted mixed results. Jaguar was up a healthy 41% with Land Rover up 15%. Volvo fell a shocking 31.1% with total sales coming in at 4,233 units. Porsche posted just a 3% gain. Maserati, which joins our sales ticker for the first time this month gets the prize for the biggest increase, with the Ghibli contributing to a 319% sales jump.
  

• Asian luxury auto makers posted similar mixed results. Toyota's Lexus division had the most solid gains with a 12.7% increase spread throughout their core products. The Lexus IS and ES posted solid gains while all of Lexus's SUVs were up. The best selling Lexus RX even notched up 7%. Nissan's Infiniti division posted a gain of 10.5%, but nearly all of that gain comes from the new Q50 model that replaced the G-series and the new QX60 with all other models posting substantial losses. Acura posted an 18.9% gain with most of that coming from a dramatic upswing in MDX sales. Hyundai's Genesis line dropped by about 400 units for the month, but as they do not break out sedan and coupe sales we have no way of knowing which one (or both) took the hit.
  

• Of the U.S. domestic brands, Lincoln posted the largest percentage gain with a 17.4% upswing, almost entirely from a jump in sales of the new MKZ, though 762 Lincoln Navigators found new homes as well, which was an improvement over this time last year. Cadillac had strong growth overall with a 11.4% gain owed mostly to the ATS and XTS sedans. The CTS sedan, with a new model just rolling in to dealers last month maintained pace with only a 5.5% loss for the month. Chrysler performed terribly with only the Town & Country Mini-Van posting any increase.
  

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[dwightlooi]

Actually this is kind of a disappointment. Cadillac deserves much more than 11.4% given how dramatically they have improved and revamped their products and how comprehensive their lineup is.

[Drew Dowdell]

The 2014 CTS didn't really make it into dealers in any great numbers until the very late in the month. It will pick up more.

[G. David Felt]

We'll I think the next year will show if this is solid across the whole family or not for Cadillac.

[Drew Dowdell]

Escalade is coming next year plus some addions to the ATS line late next year. SRX should be in 18 months to 2 years.

[riviera74]

Chrysler LLC does not have any luxury brands (or cars!) to speak of. Not even the old New Yorker of the 80s or the 90s qualified as luxury.

[G. David Felt]

With the auto packages that OEM's are pushing such as the Platinum edition, it makes FORD have more Luxury versions than Lincoln.

[Drew Dowdell]

Chrysler LLC does not have any luxury brands (or cars!) to speak of. Not even the old New Yorker of the 80s or the 90s qualified as luxury.

The 300 is a luxury car...

Do you guys think I should have included Buick? Except the Verano and Encore, most of their cars sticker predominatnly over $30. Even the Regal which is under $30k MSRP for the most basic model heads north of that as soon as the destination charge is added.

[smk4565]

Percentages can be deceiving, Lincoln may have been up 17% but does anyone see them as a threat? When your sales are in the gutter, going up 17% isn't too hard. It is hard to see Volvo lasting much longer, that brand seems ready to die.

Cadillac needs more models, they need ATS and CTS coupes, they need at least 1 convertible if not 2. The product line just isn't as diverse as the German brands. Cadillac doesn't have hybrid or diesel powertrains like Lexus or the Germans do. I think those areas need addressed to see the sales gains, because some people will buy solely on MPG, or want a coupe or convertible and Cadillac doesn't have that product yet.

[G. David Felt]

Chrysler LLC does not have any luxury brands (or cars!) to speak of. Not even the old New Yorker of the 80s or the 90s qualified as luxury.

The 300 is a luxury car...

Do you guys think I should have included Buick? Except the Verano and Encore, most of their cars sticker predominatnly over $30. Even the Regal which is under $30k MSRP for the most basic model heads north of that as soon as the destination charge is added.

I think it would be good to clearly define the mid luxury segment from the high luxury segment.

[G. David Felt]

Percentages can be deceiving, Lincoln may have been up 17% but does anyone see them as a threat? When your sales are in the gutter, going up 17% isn't too hard. It is hard to see Volvo lasting much longer, that brand seems ready to die.

Cadillac needs more models, they need ATS and CTS coupes, they need at least 1 convertible if not 2. The product line just isn't as diverse as the German brands. Cadillac doesn't have hybrid or diesel powertrains like Lexus or the Germans do. I think those areas need addressed to see the sales gains, because some people will buy solely on MPG, or want a coupe or convertible and Cadillac doesn't have that product yet.

When your rebuilding a brand and their image, I can understand the desire to have a halo car like a 2 door convertible, but I think that is a waste of money at this time and there are better options to sink R&D into for expanding models that will have a greater impact on the Cadillac line. The coupes and diesels / Hybrid power trains will be better for Cadillac than the convertible. That can be done down the road when profits are deeper.

[Drew Dowdell]

Percentages can be deceiving, Lincoln may have been up 17% but does anyone see them as a threat? When your sales are in the gutter, going up 17% isn't too hard. It is hard to see Volvo lasting much longer, that brand seems ready to die.

Cadillac needs more models, they need ATS and CTS coupes, they need at least 1 convertible if not 2. The product line just isn't as diverse as the German brands. Cadillac doesn't have hybrid or diesel powertrains like Lexus or the Germans do. I think those areas need addressed to see the sales gains, because some people will buy solely on MPG, or want a coupe or convertible and Cadillac doesn't have that product yet.

Volvo is trying to nudge prices up. Slower sales will be a result of that.

I thought I was pretty clear in my intro paragraph that I was attempting to address the deception of percentages.

Cadillac is the one brand with the most growth potential in the near term because they have the most core products coming online soon. The 2014 CTS really won't take off for another month or two, then we'll get Escalade, ATS coupe, plus whatever else Cadillac has up their sleeves.

[smk4565]

Percentages can be deceiving, Lincoln may have been up 17% but does anyone see them as a threat? When your sales are in the gutter, going up 17% isn't too hard. It is hard to see Volvo lasting much longer, that brand seems ready to die.

Cadillac needs more models, they need ATS and CTS coupes, they need at least 1 convertible if not 2. The product line just isn't as diverse as the German brands. Cadillac doesn't have hybrid or diesel powertrains like Lexus or the Germans do. I think those areas need addressed to see the sales gains, because some people will buy solely on MPG, or want a coupe or convertible and Cadillac doesn't have that product yet.

When your rebuilding a brand and their image, I can understand the desire to have a halo car like a 2 door convertible, but I think that is a waste of money at this time and there are better options to sink R&D into for expanding models that will have a greater impact on the Cadillac line. The coupes and diesels / Hybrid power trains will be better for Cadillac than the convertible. That can be done down the road when profits are deeper.

It doesn't have to be a halo convertible, but the A5, 3-series Lexus IS and Infiniti G37 have convertibles, I assume the Infiniti Q50 will spawn a convertible once the G is totally gone. Then you have the TT, SLK and Z4, and none of those are halo products. An ATS coupe and convertible makes sense.

Cadillac needs and 8-speed, since the Corvette is getting one, I assume all Cadillacs will too. They need a hybrid SRX to battle Lexus, and some diesel power in the sedans. If Audi, BMW and Mercedes have 40-45 mpg sedans and Cadillac comes back with a 29 mpg CTS, that doesn't look too competitive, and they will lose the green buyer. If they don't have the R&D budget to do it all, they are in trouble because Mercedes has a big R&D budget, BMW seems to also with their green movement push, and Toyota isn't running out of money anytime soon.

[Drew Dowdell]

Cadillac has 8-speeds in the CTS. And they have that FWD 7-speed DCT GM filed a patent for

[smk4565]

Cadillac has 8-speeds in the CTS. And they have that FWD 7-speed DCT GM filed a patent for

But only on the V-sport and optional on the 3.6. And not available on the turbo 4, or ATS or Escalade. Most of the luxury segment has 7 or 8 speeds, and Mercedes will have 9 on the 2015 models. Even Chrysler, Dodge and Hyundai have 8-speeds. It seems that Cadillac should have 8-speed standard across the line, if brands below can offer it.