MINIUSA Sales Down 21% For May
It’s really weird. Worldwide, MINI is doing just great. Heck, even Canada and Mexico are showing good numbers, so there are parts of the North American continent that are doing well. But here in the US, there seems to be mostly bad news for MINI sales.
May year-on-year sales numbers are down 21.2% to a total of 4,595 vehicles delivered. The good news is that the Clubman seems to be moving well, and the new Convertible is contributing to growth, but not enough to offset declines in the Hardtop (both 2- and 4- door) and the Countryman.
We’ve detailed our theories on MINI’s sales decline in the US diving into the data it would seem that some of those thoughts are supported. The very long in the tooth MINI Countryman had a solid month with over 1200 sold in the month. The fact that MINI’s oldest model sold the best clearly has something to do with it also being the brand’s only crossover. And if you aren’t keeping score in the US auto industry, crossovers are killing it in the US sales race.
US Light Vehicle sales are off a bit more than 6% overall, and Matt’s MINI Index is down as well, sliding 5.5% in May. BMW has pretty much given up any explanation or positive spin in the corporate release, just quoting numbers. A refreshed Countryman can’t come soon enough!
Official News: Woodcliff Lake, NJ – June 1, 2016…
MINI Brand Sales
For May, MINI USA reported 4,595 automobiles sold, a decrease of 21.2 percent from the 5,833 sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, MINI USA reported a total of 20,230 automobiles sold, a decrease of 16.0 percent from 24,086 automobiles sold in the first five months of 2015.
BMW pre-owned and MINI pre-owned vehicle sales.
BMW of North America is currently experiencing a technical issue which has delayed numbers for pre-owned sales. Sales numbers will be added online once the issue is resolved.
<p>According to analysts at IHS Global, low fuel prices are expected to give the US muscle car segment a boost this year. The new Ford Mustang has been a huge success and will drive the growth in this segment. The muscle car segment is predicted to increase 6% this year. Cheap fuel prices will also keep sales of SUVs, SAVs and pick-ups buoyant, with four-cylinder engines increasing segment share to 54%. As a whole, the US car market is expected to grow 2.1% this year.</p>
<p>The reality is that America is still in love with big cars.</p>
<p>I have had three Mini’s since 2003 and liked them all, including my 2013 GP. In my opinion declining sales has more to do with the cost of a new Mini, especially the performance oriented ones (JCW, S). When you consider the cost of a nicely optioned JCW, it is no longer competitive when compared to the likes of VW’s GTI’s, the recently offered Ford Focus RS and even the BMW 228i/228ix, all of which have won high praise from car reviewers. In the future I would probably still op for a Mini but the high price tag does give me pause.</p>
<p>Some perspective: (all base prices)
Golf GTI 2 door with Power Package, 220 HP, $26.5k
Golf GTI 4 door with Power Package, 220 HP, $27k
Golf R 4 door, 292 HP, $35.6k
Focus RS, 350 HP, $35.9k
Focus ST, 252 HP, $24.5k
Mustang V6, 300 HP, $24k
Mustang V8, 435 HP, $32.4k
There are lots of other cars one could add to this list, and I’m not going to argue about what all these cars do well or poorly, but for sure, one’s dollars have lots of options. All these cars would scratch a lot of automotive itches, and all the cars are getting much, much better. If one optioned a MINI to $40k, one really can see that the number of acceptable choices explodes… This doesn’t bode well for MINI in the US.</p>
<p>BMW took too long to introduce the new Countryman, so for those looking to upgrade it’s either compromise and buy a Clubman or keep on waiting. My Countryman will be six years old by the time the new one’s released to North America and seven if I want to twiddle my thumbs for the plug-in hybrid version. That’s entirely too long of a refresh cycle for the volatile subcompact class.</p>