The Premium Compact segment is not only the fastest growing of the Premium segments, it is one of the fastest growing segments overall with a year-on-year growth of 59%. The largest contributor to this growth is the Audi A3, which has been selling like hot cupcakes ever since Audi introduced the sedan version (as if more evidence was needed that US consumers love sedans). In fact, it grew so quickly that it surpassed the Mercedes-Benz CLA to grab the #1 spot, despite the former being the slightly more established market player. This gives Audi a rare segment lead in the US, a place where usually BMW and Mercedes-Benz duke it out for the top spot, with Audi at best a distant third.
Speaking of… this time around BMW can’t make it three Germans in the top three, with the bottom spot of the podium occupied by the Civic-based Acura ILX. The shapely small Japanese sedan is doing pretty well post-facelift, though 1% growth isn’t that much to write home about. Still, it’s enough to keep the BMW 1/2 series in fourth spot, though it’s catching quickly with a 63% year-on-year growth.