Segment slide continues as new models such as BMW 5-series and Volvo S90 see their sales grow quickly

Sales in the US premium large segment fell by 2.4% to 79,062 in the fourth quarter of 2017, while overall sales in 2017 fell by 9.9% to 286,030. However, despite the appearance and reputation of a staid segment slowly shrinking under the onslaught of SUVs, there is in fact a lot of action going on in the segment, with new models such as BMW 5-series, Mercedes-Benz E-class and Volvo S90 gaining substantial sales at the expense of older models. In 2018 the segment is likely to continue on this path, with the new Audi A6/A7 and Mercedes-Benz CLS joining the fray.

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Segment arrests its slide in Q3’17, thanks to new BMW 5-series and good performance from FWD modelsAfter consistently losing around 15% in sales each quarter since the beginning of 2016, the Premium Large Car segment finally rebounded a bit in the third quarter, and while it still hasn’t gone back to black, it got close with a 2% decline, the lowest from among all Premium Car segments. And while the segment is still likely to see its sales decline by double digits by the end of the year, driven mostly by rising popularity of crossovers, it is good to see that good new models like the BMW 5-series and Volvo S90 can still attract a lot of customers. [Read more…]