Lexus, Acura, BMW and Mercedes-Benz all have two models in the top 10.
Light-truck sales overall dropped by 18.3% during the first half of 2020.
Lexus RX tops once again as the country’s best-selling luxury SUV.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the auto industry down on one knee, things are slowly picking up again in dealerships. The second quarter of 2020 was particularly bad for sales and very few nameplates posted positive sales numbers compared to the same period in 2019. Light-truck sales, which include SUVs and pickup trucks, slipped 18.3%, but that’s nothing to compared to the 35.8% sales nosedive for passenger cars. Nevertheless, here are the most popular luxury SUVs in the U.S. after the first six months of 2020.
10- Cadillac XT5 (14,806 units)
The Cadillac XT5 is in its fourth year of production, and it received a host of changes and improvements for the 2020 model year. Although it stands in the 10th spot on this list, sales actually dropped by a whopping 43.9% compared to the first half of 2019.
9- Acura MDX (17,974 units)
A redesigned Acura MDX should arrive sooner or later, but in the meantime, the midsize three-row crossover is racking up healthy sales numbers. Sales dropped by 20.6% during the first half of 2020, slightly worse than the overall light-truck average.
8- Audi Q5 (18,031 units)
The Audi Q5 is another model that remained on the top 10 list of the most popular luxury SUVs in the U.S., but sales took a 43.7% hit compared to the first half of 2019. The performance-infused SQ5 is included in the sales numbers.
7- BMW X5 (19,155 units)
Redesigned for the 2019 model year, the BMW X5 is offered with six- and eight-cylinder engines as well as a plug-in hybrid variant. Oh, there’s also the high-performance X5 M, too. Sales are down 21.6% compared to the same period in 2019.
6- BMW X3 (20,074 units)
The BMW X3 managed to stay ahead of the X5 on the list of most popular luxury SUVs in the United States. We say that because sales took a 36.7% plunge compared to 2019.
5- Mercedes-Benz GLE (21,305 units)
The Mercedes-Benz GLE, which includes the Mercedes-AMG GLE43, GLE53 and GLE63 variants, is the top-selling midsize luxury SUV in the States right now. Sales actually rose by 19.5% during the first half of 2020, which is an anomaly given the COVID-19 pandemic.
4- Mercedes-Benz GLC (22,560 units)
Sales dropped 33.5%, but that didn’t stop the Mercedes-Benz GLC from remaining near the top of the most popular luxury SUVs list. Of course, The Mercedes-AMG GLC43 and GLC63 editions are included in the total sales count.
3- Lexus NX (22,725 units)
Introduced for the 2015 model year, the Lexus NX has successfully gained a customer base with buyers that are now considering the RX as being too big—or too expensive. Sales are down by “only” 15.4%.
2- Acura RDX (22,750 units)
The Acura RDX saw its sales melt by 24.6%, yet it actually climbed a couple of spots on the list because its adversaries ended up with worse numbers. Not that it doesn’t deserve to be near the top of the list.
1- Lexus RX (36,813 units)
The Lexus RX is once again tops among the most popular luxury SUVs in the United States, despite a 23.4% decrease in sales. It also outsold all luxury passenger cars—except one: the Tesla Model 3.
