BMW is pushing sales of electrified vehicles hard, and it is getting results. Through the first nine months of 2017, the BMW Group sold more BMW i, iPerformance, and Mini Electric vehicles than in all of 2016. In September alone, a total of 10,786 BMW and Mini electric vehicles were delivered worldwide. So far this year, total sales of 68,687 electrified vehicles were a 64.2% jump over the same period last year, and September was the first time ever that BMW Group EV sales topped 10,000 in a single month.
“We are pleased to see the ongoing, strong sales development of our unrivaled range of electrified vehicles, with independent reports confirming our leadership in the field of electromobility,” said Dr. Ian Robertson, BMW AG Board of Management member for sales and brand BMW. “The BMW Group has the largest share of the electrified market worldwide; this year, we’ve already sold more electrified vehicles than in the whole of last year and we are well on track to deliver our target of 100,000 by year-end. The continued significant sales growth of these vehicles is due in part to the increasing availability of the BMW 5 Series plug-in hybrid, which in some markets accounts for up to a third of BMW 5 Series sedan sales."
Overall BMW Group global sales also increased in September. Even though BMW X3 sales lagged in anticipation of the new model due in November, total September deliveries totaled 239,764 units, a 0.8% increase over September 2016. Total BMW Group sales through the end of the third quarter of 2017 were 1,811,234 vehicles, the best-ever number for that period.
BMW-branded vehicles constituted a record 1,537,497 sales worldwide in the first nine months of 2017, a 3.9% increase. Of those, 522,360 were X vehicles, while the BMW 1 Series contributed 143,018 units.
Mini sales were also up through the first three-quarters of the year, with a record 271,395 Minis going to customers. This was a 2.8% boost from last year.
“Mini continues to achieve sustainable sales growth with the new Mini Countryman proving a particularly strong growth driver,” commented Peter Schwarzenbauer, BMW AG Management Board member for Mini, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad. “The popularity of the first-ever Mini plug-in hybrid, which has already been delivered to more than 2,700 customers worldwide since it was introduced in June, is particularly exciting." Contributing to the BMW Group's record electrified vehicle sales in September, 10% of all Minis sold in the month were the Mini Cooper S E Countryman ALL4, Mini's first plug-in hybrid.
Rolls-Royce sales were down 10.7% in 2017 through the end of September, largely because the new Rolls-Royce Phantom is not due out until January 2018, and ultraluxury car sales in some markets have been down this year.
Two-wheeled BMWs also achieved record sales, with BMW Motorrad moving 14,090 motorcycles and maxi-scooters in September, up 15.3% from last year. Year-to-date BMW Motorrad sales were also in record territory with 127,818 units delivered so far, a 10.1% jump.—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]
