Market Insight: BMW maintains premium lead
BY MATT BROGAN | 15th Jul 2024
BMW maintains a considerable lead over its premium segment rivals as the German brand heads into a new financial year.
Despite an overall decline in the premium segment of eight per cent, BMW finished the first half of the calendar year up 9.1 per cent (compared with the same period last year), selling a total of 13,641 units.
It was the only premium segment contender beside Land Rover to finish the period with a positive result (up 8.2 per cent).
Respectively, BMW placed ahead of Mercedes-Benz (by 4028 units), Audi (by 5458 units), Lexus (by 7355 units), Volvo (by 8900 units), Land Rover (by 9623 units), Genesis (by 12,931 units), and Jaguar (by 13,238 units).
BMW Australia says the achievement underscores its resilience and appeal in a market facing ongoing economic challenges.
X (SUV) models continue to provide strong momentum for BMW in Australia. In the six months until June 30, the Bavarian marque sold an impressive 8139 SUVs – accounting for nearly 60 per cent of all BMW vehicles sold
The charge is led by the small-segment X1 with 2255 sales, a figure made all the more significant by the fact it included 1237 fully electric iX1 models.
Behind the X1 is BMW’s ageing X3 mid-sizer with 1884 units – 29 per cent (or 545 units) of which were the fully electric iX3 – and the X5 in third position with 1604 sales.
Interestingly, the share of BMW electric vehicles sold relative to the brand’s total volume is a solid chunk of its overall sales, making the brand a serious player in Australia’s battery electric vehicle (BEV) market along with Tesla, BYD, MG and Volvo.
Since the introduction of the i3 in 2014, BMW Australia has sold a total of 8846 BEVs, including 3740 in the first half of 2024 alone. As noted, the iX1 is the most popular of these with 1237 sales units, followed closely by the i4 with 1177 units.
Other model highlights include the X2 (up 217.9 per cent to 728 units), X6 (up 63.2 per cent to 403), X7 (up 9.9 per cent to 515), and XM (up 118.8 per cent to 70 units).
However, not all SUV sales were strong – the BMW iX was down 50.7 per cent to 255 units and the X4 was down 8.6 per cent to 374 units over the first six months of 2024.
Sports model sales were largely positive with 2 Series Coupe sales up a whopping 85.6 per cent to 900 units and Z4 models up 10.3 per cent to 43 units. Sales of the 4 Series Coupe and Convertible range fell marginally (down 1.5 per cent) to 383 units while 8 Series sales dropped 34.5 per cent to 19 units.
BMW passenger models performed less admirably with the 1 Series notching just 530 units (down 49.4 per cent), 2 Series Gran Coupe 364 units (down 40.9 per cent), 3 Series 1511 units (down 6.8 per cent), 4 Series Gran Coupe 168 units (down 67.3 per cent), 6 Series GT 3 units (seemingly previously unsold floor stock), 7 Series 21 units (down 57.1 per cent), 8 Series Gran Coupe 10 units (down 63.0 per cent), and i7 23 units (down 23.3 per cent).
The only passenger model to buck the downward trend was the 5 Series with 350 units (up 75.9 per cent), most of which came from state police force sales.
Commenting on the brand’s growth Down Under, BMW Australia CEO Wolfgang Buechel said the achievement is as much a reflection on the brand’s dealers as it is upon its products.
“Our commitment to the Australian market has never been stronger in our 45 years of business operations,” he stated.
“We have an outstanding team who works closely with our independently owned nationwide retail network of 49 dealers who continuously bring BMW’s innovation to life across our entire business chain.
“Success is not only about the exceptional products we bring into the market, but also about every link in our business chain working together to prioritise our customers’ experience with the brand.
“The outlook for the remainder of the year looks bright as we gear up to build on our successful momentum and expand our commitment to the Australian market,” he concluded.
