In comparison to last August when Toyota sales were at their peak under Cash for Clunkers, sales were down 31.4 percent on a daily selling rate (DSR) basis.

DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 1, 2010 – Consumer demand for Ford’s fresh lineup of high-quality, fuel-efficient vehicles helped the company continue to grow its retail market share in August for the 22nd time in the last 23 months.

Ford, Lincoln and Mercury dealers delivered 157,503 new vehicles in August, down 11 percent versus a year ago, when Ford outpaced the industry during the “Cash for Clunkers” sales program.

"We've known that August comparisons would be irrelevant due to the 'Cash for Clunkers' program last year," said John Mendel, executive vice president of sales for American Honda. "The good news is that we continue to see increasing demand for Honda products as customers seek even greater value."

“Led by both the strength of our product lineup and successful marketing initiatives like our presence on the Emmys, Infiniti continued to build awareness and sales momentum in August,” said Ben Poore, vice president, Infiniti Business Unit. “With the new G25 entry luxury sedan joining the all-new, red-hot Infiniti M, QX and the rest of the freshened G Line, we expect to continue our gains in the competitive luxury market.”

BMW's U.S. sales top Lexus' for third straight month
September 2, 2010 - 8:03 am ET


BMW has set a goal of becoming the best-selling U.S. luxury brand by 2012.



DETROIT (Bloomberg) -- BMW AG's namesake brand increased U.S. sales 1.6 percent in August and beat Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus nameplate as the top U.S. luxury brand for the third straight month.

BMW sales rose to 19,540 as deliveries of its 1 Series gained 53 percent and the 7 Series climbed 42 percent. Lexus deliveries decreased 15 percent to 19,465.

“We are seeing a slowdown in the market and do not expect the second half of the year to be as strong as the first half,” Jim O'Donnell, BMW of North America president, said in a statement. “Despite this, building momentum throughout the year and narrowing the gap with our competitors is still our plan.”

Lexus was one of the few luxury brands to post a sales decline in an overall U.S. market that dropped 21 percent last month. Most of those brands had fallen in August of 2009, when the U.S. cash-for-clunkers incentives spurred sales of small, fuel-efficient cars.

Lexus had record recalls in the past year, including of its LS 460 cars and GX 460 SUVs, and is facing competition from revamped models by BMW and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz. BMW, which beat Lexus in June and July, has set a goal of becoming the best-selling U.S. luxury brand by 2012.

“The new product is just so important for the entire market but especially for the luxury segment where it is much more discerning between old versus new,” said Jessica Caldwell, senior analyst with Edmunds.com, a Santa Monica, Calif.- based provider of industry data.

Mercedes sales increased 15 percent to 19,682 vehicles. The gain was helped by the revamped E-Class, which rose 26 percent for the month and has gained 71 percent for the year through August.

Lexus remains the U.S. luxury sales leader for the year, with 145,490 deliveries through August, an 11 percent increase. Mercedes sales, including Sprinter vans, have gained 22 percent to 144,753, and BMW's U.S. sales increased 7.8 percent to 139,236 vehicles.

Close race

“That race is very close this year, much closer than in years past,” Caldwell said.

Luxury car sales are benefiting from a partial recovery in wealthier households and look healthier compared with a year earlier, Paul Ballew, chief economist for Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. in Columbus, Ohio, said in a telephone interview.

“The luxury end got decapitated in the downturn, so you're seeing a recovery from subdued levels,” Ballew said.

Deliveries at General Motors Co.'s luxury division, Cadillac, gained 83 percent from last year as sales of the redesigned SRX SUV more than tripled.

Ford Motor Co. sold 6,428 of its Lincoln luxury vehicles in August, a 9.4 percent increase from a year earlier.

Volkswagen's brands

U.S. deliveries of Volkswagen AG's Audi brand rose 14 percent to 9,182 vehicles. Porsche SE, which is merging with Volkswagen, reported a 33 percent sales increase to 2,032 vehicles.

Tata Motors Ltd.'s Jaguar posted a 62 percent gain in sales to 1,414 vehicles. The company's Land Rover division sold 2,544 vehicles for the month, an 11 percent increase.

Honda Motor Co.'s Acura luxury brand sales rose 20 percent to 11,534 vehicles.

Nissan Motor Co. reported Infiniti deliveries of 9,428 vehicles, 22 percent higher than a year earlier.

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...#ixzz0yRB6gaEF

For any brand, automotive or non-automotive, greater diversity across its product portfolio reduces risk since dependence on any one product is limited. Given the generally high quality of today's new vehicles, there is not as much risk as there used to be of one product being virtually crippled by a major quality problem, recall or bad publicity.

The seven leading premium marques have varying degrees of product diversification (see table below). Mercedes-Benz appears to have the most diverse set of vehicles, as no Mercedes-Benz model accounts for more than 29% of the brand's total U.S. retail new vehicle registrations (May 2010 CYTD). And each of four Mercedes-Benz models has more than 10% of the make's registrations, something only one other brand (Acura) can claim.



Other premium brands with moderate diversification include Acura, Audi (which is less reliant on the A4/S4 than it used to be), Cadillac and Lexus. Both BMW and Infiniti are heavily reliant on one product, with the 3-Series accounting for almost half of all BMW sales and the Infiniti G claiming almost six of every ten Infiniti deliveries.

It is also noteworthy that the three leading large premium sedans (7-Series, LS and S Class) each account for exactly 6% of their respective brand's portfolios, suggesting the direct competition among them and their ongoing positioning against one another. Lastly, for six of the seven leading luxury market brands, the model with the highest proportion of registrations is a small car or crossover, which one would predict given these models' low prices. However, this is not the case at Mercedes-Benz, where the E-Class out-sells the smaller and less expensive C Class, which underscores the long history – and substantial owner base - of the midsize E in this country.

JAGUAR LAND ROVER REPORTS U.S. SALES FOR AUGUST

* Jaguar Land Rover North America sales increase 25 percent for month on strength of new models from both brands
* Land Rover continues its streak with an 11 percent increase over August 09
* Land Rover LR4 continues to be company's most improved sales performer
* Jaguar sales for August increase 62 percent driven by sales of the all-new XJ
* Jaguar Platinum Coverage begins to take hold in market

SEPTEMBER 1, 2010 MAHWAH, NJ – Jaguar Land Rover North America today reported August U.S. sales: Land Rover sales were 2,544 units, 11 percent up from 2,285 units in August 2009; Jaguar sales were 1,414 units, 62 percent up from 875 units in August 2009. Jaguar Land Rover North America August U.S. sales for both brands hit 3,958 units, a 25 percent increase from 3,160 in August 2009. On a calendar year to date basis versus 2009, Jaguar Land Rover North America sales are up 19 percent to 28,581 units.

"In August, we saw continued success based on our strong product line up across both brands," said JLRNA President Gary Temple. "We look to keep this momentum as we continue to offer class-leading customer care and put forward high quality vehicles that deliver extraordinary performance, innovative technology and superior styling."

U.S. BRAND HIGHLIGHTS

Land Rover
Land Rover's U.S. sales in August were up 11percent, the brand's 11th consecutive month of U.S. sales growth, driven by the launch of the new 2010 models and improved business conditions. The volume leader for August was the Range Rover Sport with 860 units sold, followed by the Range Rover with 759 units sold. The re-designed 2010 LR4 continues its sales surge, increasing 292 percent to 549 units, up from 140 in August 2009. For the year, sales of Land Rover's four models have increased 23 percent to 19,800 units.

For the 2011 Model Year Land Rover's lineup features four models: The 230-hp 3.0 liter I6 powered LR2; the new LR4 powered by the 375-hp 5.0 liter V8; the Range Rover Sport and Range Rover, both available with the naturally-aspirated 375-hp V8 and 510-hp supercharged 5.0 liter V8 powertrains.

Jaguar
For August, Jaguar benefitted from strong sales of the all-new XJ as well as being able to offer customers Jaguar Platinum Coverage. Sales of Jaguar Cars in the U.S. increased to 1,414 units, from 875 in August 2009, a 62 percent increase for the brand in the U.S. Jaguar's U.S. sales of the 2011 Jaguar XJ hit 700 units in its third full month in dealerships. Following the all-new XJ, was the Jaguar XF with 570 units sold. The Jaguar XK coupe and convertible sports cars hit 143 sales in August. For the year, sales of Jaguar's three models have increased 13 percent to 8,781 units.

For the 2011 MY, Jaguar Platinum Coverage will give Jaguar owners increased vehicle warranty coverage and the best maintenance plan in the business. The new Jaguar Platinum Coverage features a five year/50,000 mile new vehicle limited warranty and complimentary scheduled maintenance for the duration of the warranty period, including no-cost replacement of select wear and tear components, and 24/7 roadside assistance. This no-cost coverage includes oil changes, filters, brake pads, brake discs, brake fluids and wiper blade inserts.