While sales of both companies were down in 2022, the two brands experienced signs of recovery in the last quarter of the year.
Automotive News Europe reports that “BMW outsold rival Mercedes-Benz for the second year in a row by better navigating the supply-chain issues hampering global auto production.
Worldwide deliveries of core BMW-brand cars fell 5 percent to 2.10 million last year, edging Mercedes, whose shipments slipped 1 percent to 2.04 million.”
The article further states, “While BMW and Mercedes both grew sales in the final months of 2022, they could not compensate for business lost during the first half, when parts shortages and the war in Ukraine crimped output. Automakers have more recently faced intensifying headwinds including soaring energy and borrowing costs.”
According to motor1.com, “BMW retained the crown for the best-selling German premium automaker last year beating Mercedes-Benz with a minimal advantage. Both brands saw declines in their deliveries but the firm from Munich managed to deliver 56,792 more vehicles worldwide to claim the victory. BMW sold a total of 2,100,692 units around the globe last year, which represents a decrease of 5.1 percent compared to last year. Mercedes, in turn, reports 2,043,900 sales, down 1.0 percent compared to the previous year.”
The report also states: “BMW seems to be proud of the fact that its hybrid and electric vehicles sales were up by 35.6 percent last year to a total of 372,956 units. Mercedes sold 319,200 plug-in and fully electric cars, an increase of 19 percent. Including sales from Smart, almost every second car sold by Mercedes-Benz Passenger Cars in 2022 was battery-powered (44 percent of overall retail unit sales).”
In conclusion, motor1.com reports, “While sales of both BMW and Mercedes were down last year, the two brands saw positive signs of recovery in the final quarter of the year. The folks from Munich enjoyed a 10.6 percent growth in Q4 2022, while their colleagues from Stuttgart registered a 17 percent increase compared to the third quarter of the year.”
For more details read the full 2022 sales reports of BMW and Mercedes.
Banner photo via Instagram @bmw.
