2024 was a bittersweet year for the BMW Group. On one hand, BMW kept its global sales luxury crown, and M posted record deliveries. On the other hand, BMW shipments dropped by 2.3% to 2,200,177 units. We’ve now learned the British subsidiaries also fell in the last 12 months. Both MINI and Rolls-Royce suffered a decline in shipments, with Oxford reporting a worrying 17.1% loss while Goodwood fell 5.3%.
MINI sold 244,915 cars in 2024, during which it essentially renewed its entire lineup. When a model switches to the next generation, it usually slows things down. Production of a new model takes time to ramp up, so sales during the changeover year are typically lower. However, the 17.1% drop is significant, especially since the lineup grew to include the Aceman. The company’s first electric-only car is a nearly global product, but it doesn’t have a US visa.
Rolls-Royce has never been about volume, but we reckon the BMW Group isn’t happy about the sales decline. Following a record-breaking 2023, when shipments reached 6,032 cars, demand last year dropped to 5,712 vehicles. The Cullinan and Ghost both went under the knife in 2024, leaving room for potential sales growth this year.
2025 will be an interesting year for RR, which has already announced plans to unveil its second electric vehicle. The ultra-luxury marque is coy about the details of the new EV, but some reports indicate it’ll be an SUV. If the rumor mill is accurate, the high-riding model will be smaller than the V12-powered Cullinan.
The BMW Group has said both MINI and Rolls-Royce will become fully electric around 2030. However, many automakers have pushed back their lofty EV goals in recent months, citing lower-than-expected sales growth for zero-emission cars. The core BMW marque won’t abandon combustion engines anytime soon, and it hasn’t set an end date for ICE.
Source: BMW Group
