Car & Bike News » BMW

Mercedes surpasses Lexus in U.S. luxury car sales

admin — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 07:16:02 +0000

The race for the top-selling luxury marque in the United States took a turn in September as Mercedes-Benz used a 22 percent monthly gain to overtake Lexus after nine months.

Sales of Mercedes-brand vehicles, including Sprinter vans, rose to 20,675, as deliveries of the E-Class sedan continued to propel the brand.

“We’re going to continue in the same direction as we have for the first nine months,” CEO Ernst Lieb said in an interview. “Will it be necessarily again another 22 percent up or so? Maybe not, but we definitely see a two-digit increase for the remainder of the year.”

Deliveries for BMW’s namesake brand rose 21 percent to 18,228 from last September. Lexus sales fell 6 percent last month to 16,948, in an overall market that gained 29 percent from a weak September a year earlier.

“It’s been a challenging year for the whole industry,” Brian Smith, U.S. vice president of Lexus sales, said in a conference call Friday. “We feel real good about where we are this year. I don’t think we’re going to lose leadership this year, but time will tell.”

Mercedes sales are up 22 percent 165,427 so far this year, while Lexus has risen 9 percent to 162,438. BMW deliveries are up 9 percent to 157,464 in an industry that has risen 10 percent.

Through August, Lexus had led Mercedes by 737 vehicles.

Mercedes predicts strong Q2 growth after solid April

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 11:52:22 +0000

Sales of Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz brand rose 15.3 percent to 93,100 units in April, 2010, the third German luxury carmaker to confirm that a recovery in demand continued over last month.

“It’s a great start into the second quarter during which we plan to substantially boost sales,” Joachim Schmidt, head of sales and marketing for Daimler’s passenger car business, said in a statement. “In line with the sales development, our incoming orders have increased significantly as well. That is particularly due to the high demand in China and the U.S. and the great success of the E and S class.”

Mercedes continues to lag rivals BMW AG and Audi AG in global sales through April by about 20,000 units each.

Daimler also is struggling to achieve any growth with its Smart brand. After an 11 percent drop to just 9,000 units in April, Daimler hopes a refreshed ForTwo in the next quarter will provide a boost to sales.

BMW to save billions by 2012

admin — Thu, 06 May 2010 07:58:07 +0000

World’s largest luxury automaker – BMW – announced that it is well on track to meet and even exceed its goal of reducing costs on components and supplies by $5.2 billion by 2012. BMW says that it was able to do so partly due to a partnership with rival carmaker Mercedes-Benz.

BMW has announced that it is on track to not only meet its goal of saving $5.2 billion by 2012, but that it will “significantly” surpass its goal.

“We can say that from today’s perspective we will certainly and easily reach the 4 billion-euro savings goal, and even significantly surpass it,” said Herbert Diess, the management board member responsible for the cuts.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz have worked together during Q1, 2010, which is expected to reduce costs for both automakers by roughly $129 million per year by 2012, according to Diess.

2011 BMW 335is Coupe / Convertible Confirmed

admin — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 07:13:21 +0000

Set to arrive in the second quarter of 2010 as 2011 models, the 3-series two-doors will receive aesthetic updates similar to those applied to the sedan for 2009, which include a minor tweaking of the front and rear fascias, as well as new head- and taillights with LED elements. The latest version of iDrive, along with various other equipment upgrades, will be present, too.

While one of the highlights of BMW’s Detroit auto show stand was the official unveiling of the 335-hp Z4 sDrive35is, the German automaker failed to address rumors that similar performance-oriented updates will be applied to the 3-series. Fortunately, four-seat fans also will get in on the fun. The 2011 3-series coupe and convertible lineup will include hotter 335is models with upgraded, twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-sixes mated to either six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch automated manual gearboxes.
Set to arrive in the second quarter of 2010 as 2011 models, the 3-series two-doors will receive aesthetic updates similar to those applied to the sedan for 2009, which include a minor tweaking of the front and rear fascias, as well as new head- and taillights with LED elements. The latest version of iDrive, along with various other equipment upgrades, will be present, too.