Volkswagen and Audi took a major hit after their dieselgate scandal, which saw many of their models banned from sale in South Korea.(Image: BMW Korea)
SEOUL, May 11 (Korea Bizwire) – BMW was the most popular foreign car maker in South Korea during the month of April, knocking Mercedes-Benz from its perch as sales leader for the first time.
According to figures released by the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) yesterday, BMW sold 6,334 vehicles in April, amounting to a 31.6 percent market share.
Sales of BMW cars increased 2.8 percent from the previous month.
In the meantime, Mercedes-Benz surpassed BMW in total sales during the first quarter of the year, boasting a market share of 33.2 percent.
Lexus ranked third after BMW and Mercedes-Benz in April sales, moving 1,030 units and accounting for 5.1 percent of the market, closely followed by Toyota (4.4%), Honda (4.4%) and Ford (4.1%).
Volkswagen and Audi took a major hit after their dieselgate scandal, which saw many of their models banned from sale in South Korea.
The Mercedes-Benz E 220d was the bestselling model in April, with 818 units sold.
The BMW 320d and Lexus ES300h ranked second and third, with 813 and 717 units sold, respectively.
When divided by the country, vehicles from European carmakers dominated the imported car market, surpassing a market share of 74 percent, while Japanese and American carmakers followed, accounting for 18.1 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively.
In terms of fuel type, diesel vehicles were most popular, accounting for over half of the total sales in April, while gasoline-powered vehicles accounted for 35.9 percent.
There were 1,720 hybrid cars sold, for an 8.6 percent share of the market.
The number of registered imported vehicles also jumped 12.4 percent in April year on year.
“Some brands suffered a sales drop due to a shortage of supply during April, but overall sales improved compared to the same time a year ago,” the KAIDA said.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire)
