'E-Class vs 5 Series' Head-to-Head... BMW Secures Victory in First Month

BMW New 5 Series 1,700 Units vs Mercedes-Benz New E-Class 977 Units

BMW New 5 Series (Photo by BMW Korea)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] The Mercedes-Benz E-Class and BMW 5 Series, the flagship models of German car brands leading the domestic imported car market, both released facelifted models last month and went head-to-head, with BMW taking the early lead in the first month of release.

According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) on the 4th, the new 5 Series sold about 1,700 units domestically in October. During the same period, the new E-Class recorded only 977 units, about 700 units fewer. When combining both new and old models, the E-Class and 5 Series sedan sales were tallied at 1,728 and 1,752 units respectively.

BMW appears to have gained an advantage last month by releasing the new 5 Series about a week earlier than the Mercedes-Benz E-Class. BMW launched the facelifted 7th generation 5 Series on the 5th of last month, while Mercedes-Benz released the facelifted 10th generation E-Class on the 13th of the same month. Additionally, the faster delivery amid pent-up demand ahead of the new car launches also supported BMW. In Mercedes-Benz’s case, only two new models, the E 220 d 4MATIC and E 350 d 4MATIC, began deliveries in earnest from mid-last month, resulting in a somewhat disappointing first-month performance.

The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class (Photo by Mercedes-Benz Korea)

Both the 5 Series and E-Class saw strong consumer response to their lower trims in the domestic market. BMW’s 520 model, equipped with a turbocharged 4-cylinder gasoline engine, recorded 834 units sold. The 520 model ranked third among best-selling single models, proving its popularity.

Mercedes-Benz also saw high sales for the lower trim E 220 d 4MATIC among the new E-Class models, with 622 units sold. This ranked fifth in sales among imported car models. The active sales of the E 220 d highlight the strength of diesel models. Alongside the E 220 d, Mercedes-Benz solidified its position as a leader in the imported car market by placing the GLA 250 4MATIC and GLB 250 4MATIC, introduced last summer, at sixth and seventh best-selling positions respectively.

Meanwhile, last month’s new registrations of imported cars in Korea reached 24,257 units, marking the highest figure this year. Mercedes-Benz and BMW recorded 6,576 and 5,320 units respectively, accounting for nearly half of total sales. They were followed by Audi (2,527 units), Volkswagen (1,933 units), Volvo (1,449 units), and Jeep (937 units). Volkswagen’s Tiguan 2.0 TDI and Volvo’s XC40 B4 AWD secured the first and second spots among best-selling imported car models, showing strong performance. In particular, the Tiguan 2.0 TDI has sold over 7,000 units this year, strongly supporting Volkswagen’s sales performance.

Im Han-gyu, Vice Chairman of KAIDA, explained, “New registrations of imported passenger cars in October increased compared to the previous month due to the new car effect of some brands and securing of supply.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.