1/5 Luxury Cars Sold in USA in 2018 = Tesla Model 3 or Tesla Model S

Published on January 3rd, 2019 |
by Zachary Shahan

January 3rd, 2019 by Zachary Shahan

As I just reported, the Tesla Model 3 was the #11 best selling car in the USA in 2018. As reported earlier today, in December, the Tesla Model 3 was the #1 top selling car in the USA that was produced by an American car company.

But that’s just the beginning of notable Tesla sales results.

In the month of December, Tesla sold more luxury cars than all other automakers. In fact, it accounted for approximately 30% of luxury car sales. Tesla sold more luxury sedans than BMW and Audi combined, more than Mercedes-Benz and Lexus combined. It absolutely crushed the luxury car competition.

Luxury Car Brand	December 2018 US Sales	Segment Share
Acura Cars	3,988	4%
Audi Cars	9,047	10%
BMW Cars	17,428	18%
Buick (est.)	2,388	3%
Cadillac (est.)	2,268	2%
Infiniti Cars	4,681	5%
Jaguar Cars (est.)	1,000	1%
Lexus Cars	9,551	10%
Lincoln Cars	3,044	3%
Mercedes-Benz Cars	15,482	16%
Volvo	966	1%
Tesla Cars (est.)	28,670	30%
TOTAL	94,526	100%

In terms of all luxury vehicles — SUVs and crossovers included — Tesla was #4 in December, just a bit behind Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, and BMW … despite not having a crossover/CUV on the market.

Luxury Auto Brand	December 2018 US Sales	Market Share
Acura	16,774	7%
Audi	22,765	9%
BMW	34,357	14%
Buick (est.)	20,503	8%
Cadillac (est.)	16,585	7%
Infiniti	18,065	7%
Jaguar Land Rover	14,079	6%
Lexus	35,524	14%
Lincoln	11,526	5%
Mercedes-Benz	36,254	14%
Volvo	8,826	4%
Tesla (est.)	31,970	13%
TOTAL	250,454	100%

If you look at the full year, naturally, Tesla didn’t perform as well — it spent most of the year ramping up production. Nonetheless, approximately 1 out of 5 luxury car sales were Teslas (the Model 3 or the Model S).

Luxury Car Brand	2018 US Sales	Segment Share
Acura Cars	43,842	5%
Audi Cars	97,071	11%
BMW Cars	193,465	22%
Buick Cars	33,781	4%
Cadillac Cars	31,746	4%
Infiniti Cars	48,259	5%
Jaguar Cars (est.)	11,000	1%
Lexus Cars	92,660	11%
Lincoln Cars	28,610	3%
Mercedes-Benz Cars	150,147	17%
Volvo Cars	21,456	2%
Tesla Cars (est.)	169,390	19%
TOTAL	877,585	100%

Across all types of luxury vehicles — SUVs and crossovers included — approximately 1 out of 10 sales were Tesla sales (Model 3, Model S, or Model X).

Luxury Auto Brand	2018 US Sales	Market Share
Acura	158,934	7%
Audi	223,323	10%
BMW	311,014	14%
Buick	206,863	9%
Cadillac	154,702	7%
Infiniti	149,280	7%
Jaguar Land Rover	122,626	6%
Lexus	298,310	14%
Lincoln	103,587	5%
Mercedes-Benz	315,959	14%
Volvo	98,263	5%
Tesla (est.)	197,680	9%
TOTAL	2,181,607	100%

This company is 15 years old. The Model S hit the market 6½ years ago.

Can you spell disruption? More importantly, can luxury automaker execs and shareholders spell disruption, and can they see it coming?

The good news is that these competing automakers are getting more serious about electrification — a bit more serious. The bad news (for them as well as humanity) is that they’re still moving too slowly and are years behind Tesla in critical ways.

The other good news is that Tesla is moving down market and is broadening its vehicle offerings into the crossover and pickup categories in order to pull in more buyers. The other bad news is that conventional automakers don’t seem well prepared to compete with their own highly compelling and widely available electric options in those classes. I don’t say this often, but the next few years are going to be interesting. Tesla getting up to 250,000–400,000 sales a year is an explosion, but it’s not putting any competitors into bankruptcy. Reaching 1–2 million thanks to the introduction of an electric crossover (Model Y) and electric pickup could be another story.

If you would like to buy a Tesla and want the benefits that come with a referral, feel free to use my referral code — http://ts.la/tomasz7234 — or not.

Support CleanTechnica’s work by becoming a Member, Supporter, or Ambassador.
Or you can buy a cool t-shirt, cup, baby outfit, bag, or hoodie or make a one-time donation on PayPal to support CleanTechnica’s work.

About the Author

Zachary Shahan Zach is tryin' to help society help itself (and other species). He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director and chief editor. He's also the president of Important Media and the director/founder of EV Obsession and Solar Love. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, and Canada.

Zach has long-term investments in TSLA, FSLR, SPWR, SEDG, & ABB — after years of covering solar and EVs, he simply has a lot of faith in these particular companies and feels like they are good cleantech companies to invest in. But he offers no professional investment advice and would rather not be responsible for you losing money, so don't jump to conclusions.