Automakers like to keep sales figures close to the vest. In years past, monthly sales releases would list how each individual model was doing, good or bad. Nowadays, we’re lucky to get even that, with some automakers only offering up sales numbers on a quarterly basis (e.g., BMW, Nissan, Volkswagen Group). We, the people, can demand it, but unless we’re shareholders, they don’t have to answer to us.
Besides, when we get information that’s not relevant to our daily lives, we nitpick at it anyway. Case in point: Cadillac sales. Cadillac enjoyed its best second quarter in retail sales since 2015. This is largely thanks to the Lyriq, which had a whopping 441% year-over-year increase and reportedly outsold all European EVs during the first half of the year. That’s cool, but how are the fun cars doing? Oh, not so good.
The CT4 and CT5 are tanking.
So far this year, Cadillac has sold just 3,502 units of the CT4 and 6,863 units of the CT5. That’s a 36% and 31% year-to-date drop, respectively. Competitors aren’t faring any better, though. Other compact luxury cars like the Audi A4 and Infiniti Q50 saw YTD sales declines as well. Audi A4 YTD sales are down 31% to 4,636. Infiniti experienced an 11% drop with its Q50, but it only sold 2,839 of those.
CT5 competitor, the Audi A6, went against the tide and saw its sales increase by 44% to 4,236 units. Can’t say how the other German competitors or the up-and-coming Genesis rival are doing because those automakers kept their sales numbers secret. However, the CT5 receives a much-needed facelift for the 2025 model year, which could boost future sales.
The good news is that GM’s overall portfolio grew in retail sales by 5% through the first half of 2024. Cadillac’s overall sales faltered by only a smidge at 1.72%, with its haul of 73,906 units. That’s way better than Infiniti. The Japanese premium brand moved just 28,027 vehicles off its show floor—a decrease of 13%—but looks to change that with its impending renaissance. Still, the Germans are still the luxury marques to beat. Audi sold 92,913 new vehicles (a 14% drop), while BMW continues its juggernaut with 175,712 (a 3% increase).