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Associate Director, Industry Analysis and Loyalty Solutions, S&P Global Mobility
More than half of all premium new vehicles delivered to private retail consumers in the U.S. are now equipped with either all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, according to Polk new vehicle retail registrations for the first four months of 2010. Three drivers of this trend have been the growth of crossovers, the consumer's increased interest in safety, and OEMs' continued use of common platforms (including those designed and engineered with AWD) for both non-luxury and luxury products.
The premium AWD mix has been steadily rising since 2005, when it was a little over a third of the market. At the make level, two of the three luxury market volume leaders, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, have driven this trend, as their AWD penetration rates have climbed from less than a third to 54% and 46%, respectively. The trends have been similar at other major luxury makes including Acura, Infiniti and Cadillac. Audi's exceptionally high AWD mix of 81% reflects the installation of its highly-touted Quattro on virtually every unit. The premium retail volume leader, Lexus, has actually exhibited a slight drop in AWD penetration, though it remains over 40%.
Posted by Tom Libby, PolkInsight Advisor, Polk (07.27.2010)