Cadillac Sedan Sales vs. Competitors, 1st quarter 2017

[jdemerson]

I pulled together some sales figures for Cadillac and competitors ABOVE the compact segment (ATS, C-class, 3-series, A4) since most interest in this forum seems to be for higher end models. Cadillac has lost some ground in this quarter, but there are still some surprises.

Luxury Cars                     to 3/17           to 3/16         change
Mercedes-Benz E-Class     11,872                 8,560             38.7%
Lexus ES                           9,506               13,018            -27.0%
Lincoln MKZ                       6,643                 6,554               1.4%
BMW 5-Series                    6,641                 9,710            -31.6%
Cadillac XTS                      4,678                 5,873            -20.3%
Audi A6                             3,678                 3,358               9.5%
Mercedes-Benz S-Class       3,648                 4,167            -12.5%
Infiniti Q60                        3,371                    409            724%
Cadillac CTS                       2,486                3,973             -37.4%
Cadillac CT6                       2,404                     35          6,769%
Lincoln Continental             2,309                      --               --
BMW 7-Series                    2,103                 2,313              -9.1%
Infiniti Q70                        1,962                 1,563              25.5%
Lexus GS                           1,695                 3,989             -57.5%
Audi A7                             1,426                 1,466               -2.7%
Audi A8                                793                    985             -19.5%
Lincoln MKS                            59                 1,918             -96.9%

It's interesting that XTS, CTS, and CT6 are all above BMW 7-Series, Audi A7, Audi A8, Infinity Q70, and Lexus GS.  XTS is between 5-Series and A6, both very highly regarded and long considered successful. Lexus ES and Lincoln MKZ are higher but they are somewhat lower-end and less costly; both are enhanced versions of main stream models (e.g., Ford Fusion).

The perception that the big three German luxury makes are dominate over Cadillac derives largely from the compact segment (not shown above), but the new E-Class is impressive and a new BMW 5-Series is about to appear. I still like the CT6, especially in the platinum model.

To compare SUV sales, see: http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2017/04/usa-march-2017-suv-crossover-sales-by-model.html
For comparison, the new XT5 has sold around 13,500 in 1st quarter, and Escalade has sold around 7,500. That puts the XT5 above the E-class which tops the list above. Of course we all know about the market shift towards SUVs.

Like many on this message board, I don't like the letters used for distinguishing models. But that is probably not a big factor in determining sales figures. But yes, I'd love to see a REAL Eldorado and a REAL Fleetwood back in the lineup!

John Emerson
1952 Cadillac 6219X

[Big Apple Caddy]

It's probably worth noting that the E-Class and S-Class figures for Mercedes also include coupes, convertibles, and wagons (E-Class only), although sedans do account for most of those sales.

As I've posted here before, Cadillac is still a big player in the large sedan market but it's just that the large sedan market has shrunken quite a bit.

Brands like Mercedes, BMW, Lexus and Audi have all seen record sales in the U.S. within the last couple of years thanks largely to the popularity of crossovers and SUVs.   I think Cadillac's planned expansion in that segment, at least two new models are expected, will help their sales numbers nicely.