Stories and speculation relating to tariffs and import duties continue to dominate the 24-hour news cycle, but none of that seems to be affecting BMW yet, as far as sales are concerned. BMW Group U.S. vehicle deliveries for June totaled 33,553, an increase of 0.5% over the 33,372 for 2017, and added to what is now an unbroken eight-month streak of gains. The first six months of 2018 were also expectedly strong, with 176,022 vehicles sold, which translates to 2.8% growth over the 171,291 units moved during the same period last year.
BMW-brand vehicle sales for the U.S. logged a 1.5% year-over-year gain resulting from 29,407 units sold during June, compared to 28,962 last year. Half of 2018 is now behind us, and year-to-date sales for the brand are up 2.9% with 153,386 vehicles sales easily surpassing last year’s six-month total of 149,086.
BMW’s strong lineup of X-model Sports Activity Vehicles lead the charge, accounting for 53% of all models sold. Popular lines included the X3, with 5,366 units sold during June (the model’s best month of the year so far), along with the current-generation X5, of which 4,355 examples were sold.
The still-fresh X2 also had its best month since its introduction in March, with 2,150 sold.
As a whole, sales of X BMWs continued a strong upward growth trend with an increase of sales over the same period last year. This growth has come at a cost, however, as BMW passenger-car sales were down 2.7% for June compared to last year, while vehicles classified as light trucks saw double-digit growth of 10.4%. Things still look good in the grander scheme, though, with passenger-model sales up 3.8% YTD and light trucks up 1.3%.
The future looks good as far as BMW SAVs are concerned, with the second-generation X4 coming online to replace the previous version. The fourth generation X5 will also begin production in Spartanburg, South Carolina, before long, and that model is expected to carry on the theme of strong sales established by its predecessors—which is still continuing today with the third generation.
The BMW Group currently offers a total of seven vehicles which use electrified drivetrains, and in June these models accounted for 7% of U.S. sales. That figure is, of course, expected to grow in the coming years, helped along by growing popularity of models like the 740e iPerformance (above) and i8 (below). For June, a total of 2,253 electrified BMW vehicles were sold in the U.S., which equates to 20.2% YOY growth.
MINI brand sales for June totaled 4,146, which represents a 6% contraction from 2017, when 4,410 vehicles were sold. It’s not all bad on the MINI front, however, as the brand still managed to record a YTD sales gain of 1.9%. Certified Pre-Owned and used MINI automobiles are also very popular, with growth of 74.6% and 38.5% occurring in these areas respectively in comparison with June of last year.
BMW CPO sales were also strong, with 11,608 deliveries during June, a 6% gain over 2017, while a total of 22,648 used examples were sold, equating to growth of 21.7%.—Alex Tock
[Photos courtesy BMW AG.]
