BMW Executive Expects Mercedes to Start 2012 as U.S. Top Seller

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG's BMW, on a pace to become the top-selling luxury auto brand in the U.S. this year, will probably be outsold by Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz early next year, a top executive said.

Mercedes in next year's first quarter should be at full stride at making the freshened C-Class compact car that goes on sale later this year, while BMW will be selling down its older 3-Series models, said Jim O'Donnell, head of BMW U.S. operations. As a result, Mercedes may lead in deliveries for a few months, he said.

"In the first quarter of next year, I would say Mercedes" will be No. 1, he said. "Mercedes going into 2012 in the first quarter will be in a strong position. Over the course of the year, we still should be ahead of Mercedes."

The new 3-Series, which reaches dealers in April, will help produce a BMW-brand increase of 12 percent to 15 percent next year, he said. The Munich-based automaker expects to be pursuing back-to-back years as the top luxury brand in the market.

BMW's U.S. sales rose 13 percent to 135,114 through July, placing it 5,182 sales ahead of Mercedes. Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus brand sales fell 19 percent to 102,549 through July as the automaker deals with inventory constraints from the March earthquake and tsunami. Lexus has been the top-selling luxury brand in the U.S. for the past 11 years.

The results exclude Daimler's Sprinter vans and Smart cars and BMW's Mini brand, which aren't luxury vehicles.

BMW is "on pace" to become the U.S.'s top selling luxury brand this year, said Ian Robertson, BMW's top sales executive, told reporters today in Carmel, California.

Sales growth globally will probably be "slightly lower" in the second half of this year, he said, because of model changeovers and questions about economic stability around the globe.

"I don't think any of us can underestimate what's happening on the economic front," he said. "The word that we would use is that we are 'cautious'."