MINI USA Sales up 56% for October

“Downsize not downgrade” is the reason.

I’m impressed compared with what is going on with the rest of the car industry, Mini is doing incredibley well.

[broken link - forgot the http bit!] Sales figures are here

Just goes to show that Mini’s formula still resonates with the general car buying public. Still get some humor though that once again Cross-overs and SUVs are tanking, and meanwhile the R60 looms. It does make me wonder how its going to be received since many of its direct competition is having downturns in their sales. There is no doubt that Mini is going to sell more than a few but introducing this while the market for even small SUV’s is tanking seems like quite the risk.

Taken from the autoblog post linked by lavardera:

only a few bright spots from Audi and MINI, the latter of which enjoyed monster sales last month we suspect on account of greater production capacity this year versus October 2007

I don’t think there is any difference in production from last year to this year. MINIs are selling well in the US, so allocations from other countries were redirected to meet the great demand. Go, MINI, Go!

Though BMW is still doing much better than most of the major manufactures even with the BMW brand, and having Mini really is paying dividends right now. Think BMW would be really wise to get a city car or lightweight car on the market asap as I still think thats were the near future is at.

I agree with JonPD; BMW would really benefit from introducing new city or lightweight vehicles.

I also would have to agree with r.bums; there’s a good chance that MINI’s sales in the United States may start waning in years ahead. The car is still very hot and in demand, but once the demand is met, I can’t see too much more growth in the brand here in the states.

I could be wrong, but the MINI isn’t a car from everyone… it targets a certain breed of person. As soon as the market is saturated enough, I doubt MINI’s sales will be in the upward swing of growth that it is right now. The MINI Crossover/”SUV” is a step at expanding brand appeal, but in my opinion, it’s too risky. There are too many other brands in the crossover market that make a similar product at a fraction of the cost.

I think the main appeal of the R60 will be the AWD for those living in cold and snowy climates. Seems like they could have added the RWD to the Clubman with a lot less “theatrics”. Just raise the height a bit and redesign the rear to make room for the RWD. Same goes for the “requirement” of the contrasting rear trim on the Clubman. I opted for black trim to help make it “go away” and also keep the look of the wrap-around glass. My salesman thinks they did it so the Clubman would really “stand out” as a different model. I still prefer the much cleaner rear design of the R56. Has anyone heard anything about the new “name” for the R60?

laverdera actually in many ways your right but honestly the small crossover market has more than a few very direct competitors for the R60 in both quality and price. Also if you look at the sales data for the auto industry the market is swinging more towards economy versus luxury in many ways, and is likely to keep doing so until this economy turns around.

I do believe that the R60 will sell, though I lay money down most will be in climates that makes the AWD laughable. I will bet that more are sold in the hot Mini markets in California and Florida still to allow the moms to safely drive over the speed bumps on the way to soccer practice ;).

VW already has a R60 competitor…. The small Tiguan SUV.