Following news that Mercedes-Benz extended its year-to-date sales lead over BMW by more than 5000 units through September, the company has fought back.
In the past year, it’s been a three-way race among Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Lexus to claim the crown of the best-selling luxury brand in the U.S. Prior to the 2011 tsunami that resulted in supply and manufacturing disruptions, Lexus had been the best-selling luxury brand in the U.S. for more than a decade.
BMW took the title of the best-selling luxury brand in the U.S. last year and isn't going to give up the title without a fight, although with only two full months left for the year, it’ll be a stretch to close the gap with Mercedes-Benz.
All non-M models, 3 Series and the X3, X5 and X6 SUVs qualify for the program. 3 Series coupes and comnvertibles are not included in the special offer, which runs through October 31. This is the second special offer from BMW for 2012; a Specialty Demo Allowance program in July through August offered cash-back from $2500 to $7000, depending on the model.
BMW’s incentive spending for 2012 is 37 percent above the industry average at $3418 per vehicle, but Mercedes-Benz’s incentive spending is even higher, at $3582, 44 percent above the industry average. A November 2011 offer from Mercedes-Benz allowed lessees to get out of their leases up to eight months early to get them into new models.––Paul Duchene
