April Year-on-Year Sales Down 12.4%
MINI sales decline continues into April this year, with monthly sales down by 680 units compared to last year. The only real good news for the brand seems to be that the new Clubman is moving pretty well (as is it’s platform sibling, the BMW X1), and used vehicle sales are at record levels as well.
MINI is in a tough spot here in the US. Continued low gas prices make it hard for all small cars, and the fact that MINI is self-described as a “Premium Small Car” doesn’t help much either, as heavily optioned cars can get very expensive very quickly. More competitive products from other brands, and a very small product portfolio are making 2016 a difficult year for MINI. Even MINI admits it’s difficult position. We’ve talked about the “Five Superheros” of the brand, but MINI can’t figure out what the fifth will be. In an interview with Automotive News, Peter Schwarzenbauer, BMW Group’s board member in charge of Mini, admits that adding a sedan would help sales but doesn’t really fit the brand. A roadster like the Superleggera fits the brand, but they don’t have a chassis and it’s a bad business case, as roadster sales don ‘t add many units. (The twins made the cut because they were derived from the existing R56 chassis.) To make matters more challenging, Schwarzenbauer said that as of March, there were no plans for a fully electric MINI, as well as hedging his bets on further plug-in offerings. And for those that are hoping for something based on the Rocketman concept, he said that they currently don’t have any platforms that could support that type of car. Reading between the lines, it seems that MINI doesn’t really know what to do.
The dealers seem to be a bit more optimistic. While 2016 is starting off challenging, the Clubman is selling well, and reaching buyers who aren’t interested in small cars, but do want something in the Compact segment. They are eagerly awaiting volume deliveries of the new convertible and a redesigned Countryman, but until both of these are shipping in volume, it’s looking like it will be a difficult climate here in the US for MINI. Matt’s MINI Index is basically flat this month. But Fiat is the only brand in the index that performed worse.
Official News: Woodcliff Lake, NJ – May 3, 2016…
BMW Group Sales
In total, the BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported April sales of 29,747 vehicles, a decrease of 8.3 percent from the 32,428 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, BMW Group sales are down 10.1 percent on sales of 111,199 in the first four months of 2016 compared to 123,697 in the same period in 2015.
MINI Brand Sales
For April, MINI USA reported 4,796 automobiles sold, a decrease of 12.4 percent from the 5,476 sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, MINI USA reported a total of 15,635 automobiles sold, a decrease of 14.3 percent from 18,253 automobiles sold in the first four months of 2015.
MINI Pre-Owned Vehicles
- Sales of MINI Certified Pre-Owned set an April record with 1,094 vehicles, up 14.6 percent over April 2015.
- Total MINI Pre-Owned sales also set an April record with 2,537 cars, an increase of 15.2 percent from April 2015.
- Total MINI Pre-Owned sales year-to-date were 9,063, a 14.0 percent increase from the first four months of 2015.
<p>Low gas prices are not the reason Mini sales are down—there are plenty of high MPG cars in the U.S. that are selling very well. The 2016 Honda Civic gets 42 mpg highway (better than any Mini) and sales were +29% YoY in April, 31% YoY in March, and +37% in February. Low gas prices is a red herring.</p>
<p>The bottom line is that Mini has too many poorly differentiated models that are, sadly, average across the board in performance, fuel efficiency, technology, and value.</p>
<p>And it appears BMW wants to chase after segments that Mini can’t compete in—or actually SHOULDN’T compete in, like SUVs and sedans.</p>
<p>All BMW needs to do is whittle Mini offerings down to just three models that are highly differentiated, and just concentrate their resources on making them best-in-class. That means BEST in performance, BEST in fuel economy, BEST in value.</p>
<p>And Technology is an every important factor in the buying decision. Where is CarPlay, for example? Mini Connected was a cool concept when it debuted, but half-heartedly executed, and never really updated (I have a 2015 Mini Coupé with Mini Connected, and it’s laughable how most of the features still don’t work with modern iPhones).</p>
<p>And bring back the center speedo.</p>
<p>Not to mention that U.S. fuel prices have been climbing since February and, in fact, are currently at a six-month high.</p>
<p>Good point.</p>
<p>I also find it troubling the idea of the “five superhero” troubling that was also mentioned in the article. When I look at the Hardtop 4DR vs. Countryman vs. the Clubman, I see three models that are competing for exactly the same customer.</p>
<p>As such, the current MINI lineup results in sales cannibalization because the various MINI models are competing for the same customer, rather than bringing in more customers overall because the models are differentiated enough to attract a larger customer demographic.</p>
<p>The problem is BMW doesn’t seem to realize their “superheroes” is actually just single superhero navel-gazing admiringly at his own reflections.</p>
<p>Bingo … and I also mentioned this in last month’s declining sales article.
I am the guy with the wife + kid the 4 doors are aimed at. To me all those 3 are one and the same car with negligible differences visually and none performance wise. Yet still none have interior passenger space that is dramatically more usable than the 2dr hatch.</p>
<p>Slightly off topic, I’m shocked that VW sales are down less than 10%.</p>
<p>This shows that MINI sales falling so sharply are for more reasons than low fuel prices. VW customers are loyal. There are much worse things than fudging emissions testing. I’d much rather be a TDI owner than the owner of a Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac G5, Honda from the 90s-00s, etc. I think the general public has caught on to the fact this whole emissions thing blew up larger than it should. The jury is still out about how perfect the timing was for EPA to release their press release same day VW is crowned largest auto company in the world. I’m not a conspiracy therorist, but even to me it felt… coordinated, to say the least.</p>
<p>I assumed when they actually found the smoking gun, the corporate video detailing on how to cheat on the emission test, that sales would nose dive. Hands, meet cookie jar.</p>
<p>The VW scandal wasn’t detected by any government agency. It was found by some researchers in a university. And the Cobalt SS was quite the little rocket! It’s a known secret that manufacturers have been figuring out ways to fudge the emissison testing, but not as blatently as using ECU programmed defeat devices. Pretty much every turbo charged car gets worse mileage when driven by the public at large, because they use the power, whereas during testing, the manufacturers keep their feet out of it. If one looks at the divergence between testing emissions and real world emissions, they have been steadily climing over the last decade or so. But from about 4% to about 10%, not the factors that the VW defeat device created.</p>
<p>VW was engaging with EPA in ‘confidential’ discussions and then EPA all of a sudden released a press release. They didn’t actually discover it, but had been working with VW.</p>
<p>Yes, Cobalt SS was a blast to drive… until the ignition switch randomly turned off and your airbag failed to deploy.</p>
<p>Once again sales decline because the real reason: people don’t feel like the new MINI hatch and it’s derivatives are as fun to drive, don’t like the new styling, don’t like the subtraction of standard features (i.e. chili red paint color, aluminum pedals in the S) and we hate the price. I’m sorry, but the new F5x models are not competitive to the other premium vehicles in its class (in the US) SUCH AS the Golf GTI. It doesn’t drive as well, doesn’t have as much power, it doesn’t look nice, has loads less standard equipment and costs more when similarly equipped. BMW really needs to wake up to the fact that people are tired of overpriced, underwhelming cars. The F5x models should have had loads more power than 189hp, better fuel efficiency, more standard equipment such as backup camera, and not have been styled so poorly.</p>
<p>This. I love my 2015 MINI Coupé (my second Mini, but most likely my last given the way BMW is killing the brand by a thousand cuts), but intellectually, I feel the Coupé could have been so much more.</p>
<p>It feels it should be much quicker. It should get at least 30% better MPG. In the end, the design won me over enough for me to overlook the compromises, but as a owner, it does not surprise me that the Coupé was not a sales success. It could have been, but that just shows how BMW is fumbling the brand.</p>
<p>Mini, people have spoken and are not feeling the new styling. Please go back to the drawing board asap to move the lineup back in line with the R53 and R56 models. They were much better fun to drive, much better looking, cost less, sounded better (didn’t rely on artificial sound), were much more advanced when they came out (R56 was pretty affordable and had a DI, twin-scroll turbo engine, VVT, VVL, etc.). The Prince engine was far more advanced for its time than the B48 is now. They didn’t do anything to enhance fuel economy – in fact it dropped significantly, the B48 is 25% larger yet power stayed the same and real world testing demonstrated how superior the old engine was with power delivery at any revs, earlier delivery of torque, and in almost any spot it actually made more power than the B48. Look at the Burger tuning dyno graph. It tells a vivid picture.</p>
<p>Unfortunately that beautiful R50/53 front end can’t meet current pedestrian crash standards. An EV Rocketman with the battery pack low in the chassis would, I assume, not have that issue.</p>
<p>I’ve heard this explanation thrown around a lot. Honest question here, but how exactly did the R50/R53 front fail to meet pedestrian crash standards, and why was it to find a engineer a solution that would meet the standard?</p>
<p>I find this to be bull. How can a smart car meet front end pedestrian crash standards with almost no overhang? They didn’t have to do the fishmouth and cross-eyed headlights to pass muster.</p>
<p>It has to do with many things but most importantly where the engine is located. In the Smart it’s not in the front at all which means they don’t have to build in the designated space that would protect pedestrians from the hard-points of the engine.</p>
<p>Okay, I’m sure that MINI could have figured out how to protect pedestrians from the engine with the R56 style. A pop up hood like many manufacturers are using these days probably would have done the trick.</p>
<p>Rules are more strict then they were in the fall of 2006 when the R56 was introduced.</p>
<p>Gabe, I get what you are saying. I’m curious why does the Bonnet (hood) of the F56 have to be straight and higher than R50/53? Take a look at the 2016 Honda Fit and even the new re-styled Honda Civic. Their hoods slope down. Also the fit does have a shorter overhang than the MINI.</p>
<p>Doesn’t Honda have to meet the same standards? I can handle the overhang on the F56, but I would have like the F56 bonnet to have more of down slope than the high straight line.</p>
<p>The best selling MINI in NA in April 2016, was the R60 Countryman. Extraordinary, considering that the R60 is well into its sixth year and rapidly approaching its sell by date. Judging by the success of the new X1 – sales up 117.8% YTD – expectations are high for the new F60.</p>
<p>Now, if we look at the 2016 YTD combined sales of the small F56/F57 MINIs at 4,971 and compare that to the combined sales of the bigger F54/F55/R60 MINIs at 10,622, it is clear to see that Americans prefer bigger MINIs.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, MINI sales in NA in the first four months of 2016 are down -14.3% compared to 2015. BMW passenger cars, however, are down -15.4% over the same period. Take the new X1 out of the equation, sales of BMW passenger cars are down -24.9% YTD.</p>
<p>Gas prices contribute to, but are not the sole reason for, declining MINI sales. If one looks at US buying history over not just the last couple of years, but historically, this trend is one of the constants of the US buying public. A 6 month high in gas prices isn’t that high. If one takes inflation into account, we are still at or near historical lows for gasoline prices in the US. Many of the brands in the MMI have cars of varying size, not just small cars. Smart is the exception, and they are a brand that is just begging to be taken out back and put out of it’s misery… At least MINI can look down at FIAT. The 500 is a hoot, but the 500L and 500X aren’t very compelling offerings, and the sales of those models are disappointing to say the least. What’s interesting here is that the 500X shares it’s underpinnings and engine with the Jeep Renegade, that is both selling well and fun to drive. Pauls comments about the Civic are both right and wrong. Yes, it’s selling well compared to last year, but the new Civic replaces a civic that was considered a dud, and it’s bigger than MINIs are by a lot, and can be had for less money.</p>
<p>Personally, I wonder at MINI advertising strategy. I don’t often see MINIs in magazine comparisons. It’s not that they are never there, it’s just that they are rarely there. At the last media event I went to, lots of brands were present, but MINI wasn’t. I’m not sure where the marketing philosophy is, but it seems somewhat confused as well.</p>
<p>The US market overall wants bigger cars than MINI offers. The dealers are stoked that the Clubman is something that is on the larger side, as those that were single or without kids now have something to move up into.</p>
<p>I’m personally bummed that MINI isn’t doing what FIAT did with the 500e… Just outsource it. The wife’s 500e is really a blast to drive, cheap to own, and with our three year lease about to come up, she is really sad that the car will be leaving our stable. If there were an inexpensive MINIe available, we’d be doing the paperwork for a July delivery right now! Instead, we’re thinking about replacing it, or keeping our 08 Clubbie (on the verge of needing a lot of work) till the Bolt is out. The increased range would make the drive to her mom’s house within the usable range, instead of the 500e just being a commuter and errand car.</p>
<p>I really like the content of the i3, but in hindsight, it seems that it may not have been the best of ideas to make it with a custom platform that couldn’t be used for other offerings. It seems it’s a bit of a one trick pony, and while it’s helped BMW to be able to really scale a lot of high tech manufacturing, it’s not hitting sales targets either, and if it could have been a sharable design, they could have reused it in other cars.</p>
<p>Anyway, MINI is in an interesting place. The rebirth of the Riley Elf isn’t going to help much. Here, in the US, larger will sell better. Personally, I’m a form dictates function kind of guy, so overwrought styling doesn’t really do much for me. But to tell you the truth, non MINI loyalists don’t really see too much difference in the hatchbacks over time. I honestly don’t think a cleaner design would really help too much.</p>
<p>It’s going to be an interesting year or two for MINI here in the US. It’s possible the brand will do well world wide while it’s challenged here. Time will tell for sure.</p>
<p>“The refreshed and expanded MINI model lineup has been driving demand since the first of the year and now rising gas prices mean even more people are open to small. The US is MINI’s largest market and the addition of the new Countryman offering four doors and All Wheel Drive is a real game-changer, further increasing our appeal.”</p>
<p>Jim McDowell, Vice President – MINI USA, May 3, 2011.</p>