For the first time ever, two German camakers, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, are dueling for the honor of being the top luxury brand in the United States.
Lexus, Toyota’s high-line marque, has held the title for the past several years. But it is expected to surrender the title as the best-selling luxury brand in the U.S. — the world’s largest market for expensive cars – due to production cuts resulting from the March earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan.
“I anticipate Lexus will push its iconic ‘December to Remember’ message hard next month in the hopes of closing the gap with Mercedes-Benz and BMW,” said Jessica Caldwell, the senior analyst at Edmunds.com, “though there is no chance Lexus will keep its leader status this year.”
BMW currently holds a slight lead but Mercedes-Benz’s sales in the U.S. surged during November, climbing more than 40%. Sales of BMW-brand vehicles increased only 7%, leaving it clinging to slender lead of less than 2,000 vehicles.
So far this year, BMW has sold 221,073 vehicles, while Mercedes has sold 219,491, according to the latest sales figures.
“We’re not going to chase the title with incentives,” Mercedes-Benz USA vice president of marketing Steve Cannon told reporters during a luncheon in Detroit.
However, he also noted Mercedes has completely overhauled its product line in the U.S. this year and its latest models, such as the new C-Class, C-Class Coupe and M-Class are now available at dealers across the U.S., Cannon said, bolstering chances for strong sales in December as well.