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Customer LoginsCompact premium crossovers gain share
Compact premium crossovers are one of the hottest segments in the premium market. Their share of the total luxury market has climbed to almost 7% this year, more than triple the share of five years ago. And this year's segment share would be even higher if the BMW X3, one of the segment volume leaders, had not been going through a changeover to an all-new model. The segment's model count has jumped to seven, and will climb further in the near future when small Cadillac and Lincoln products arrive.
Through nine months this year, the Q5 is the retail volume leader, but the GLK is only about 1,000 units behind. At this time last year, the GLK was the retail leader, and two years ago the X3 was in front. As mentioned, the X3's current sales volume has been hurt by the changeover to a new version.
Six-cylinder powertrains dominate the segment and are the only offering for five models. The Q5 started offering a four-cylinder engine this year, and the RDX only comes with a four-cylinder engine.
Given the CAFE requirements of the coming decade, the industry-wide popularity of crossovers, and upcoming new entries from current non-players Cadillac and Lincoln (and potentially others), this segment promises to grow further in the near future and play an even more important role in the premium market.
Posted by Tom Libby, PolkInsight Advisor, Polk (11/24/2010)