Over the past two years, the market share of new energy vehicles (NEVs) has been steadily increasing, particularly in the premium vehicle segment. Emerging automotive players such as SERES, Lixiang, and NIO have captured a significant portion of the market from traditional luxury car brands. Even the three leading joint-venture automakers—BBA (BMW, Benz, Audi)—are now facing a challenging situation characterized by declining sales and price cuts.

As we move into 2026, the advancements and models introduced by new automotive forces are impressive, while the traditional luxury vehicle market, represented by BBA, is grappling with the transition to new energy technologies. To remain competitive against these new entrants, BBA has been compelled to implement substantial price reduction strategies.

It is no overstatement to claim that this year may witness the most significant price reductions by BBA since their entry into the domestic market. Just how substantial are these reductions? Let's delve into the details next.

Starting with Mercedes-Benz, its two primary models currently on sale, the E-Class and C-Class, have both experienced price drops exceeding 100,000 yuan. The most significant reduction is seen in the 2026 Mercedes-Benz E-Class 300L Exclusive, with discounts surpassing 140,000 yuan. Following official price cuts for the Mercedes-Benz E-Class 260L and additional dealership discounts, the base price has dropped to as low as 265,000 yuan. In comparison, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class offers slightly smaller discounts, with all models available at around 80,000-90,000 yuan off, bringing the base price to approximately 220,000 yuan. The SUV model, Mercedes-Benz GLC, boasts a comprehensive discount of about 100,000 yuan, with the base price falling below 280,000 yuan.

BMW's flagship models, the 5 Series and 3 Series, also feature notable discounts. The BMW 5 Series is available with a comprehensive discount of 150,000-160,000 yuan, reducing the base price of the 525Li entry-level model to 280,000 yuan post-discount. The BMW 3 Series currently enjoys a market discount of 50,000-60,000 yuan, demonstrating greater price resilience compared to its Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A4 counterparts. Across all models, the BMW X3 offers discounts ranging from 50,000 to 70,000 yuan, which are relatively modest compared to the Mercedes-Benz GLC's discounts.

Audi stands out with the most substantial discounts. The current maximum discount for the Audi A6L reaches 160,000 yuan, bringing the post-discount base price below 260,000 yuan. The Audi A4L also offers significant discounts, around 100,000-110,000 yuan, reducing the base price to approximately 180,000 yuan after discounts. Among the three SUV models—Mercedes-Benz GLC, BMW X3, and Audi Q5L—the Audi Q5L offers the largest discounts, with price reductions of 120,000-130,000 yuan across all models, and a base price as low as 240,000 yuan. The SAIC Audi A7L provides discounts of around 120,000 yuan across all variants.

From the data presented, it is evident that the current discounts on BBA's primary models are unprecedented. The question remains: How have sales fared following these significant price reductions?

Sales data for domestically priced vehicles above 300,000 yuan from January to July this year reveals that only the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and Audi A6L made it into the top ten list, with all three models selling over 600 units in the first seven months. Among them, the BMW 3 Series led with 75,803 vehicles sold. The Mercedes-Benz E-Class and Audi A6L sold 70,425 and 66,245 vehicles, respectively. Except for the Audi A6L, which had average monthly sales of less than 10,000 units, the other two models still achieved monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units.

The top three models—Tesla Model Y, Xiaomi YU7, and Xiaomi SU7—all sold over 100,000 units in the first seven months of this year, with the Model Y claiming the top spot with nearly 198,000 units sold.

In the first half of the year, BMW led the three BBA automakers in domestic sales, with 262,000 units sold, marking a year-on-year decrease of 20.4%. Audi followed with 233,000 units sold domestically in the first half of the year, a year-on-year decrease of 19%. Mercedes-Benz sold 210,200 units domestically in the first half of the year, experiencing a year-on-year decrease of 28.3%. In terms of both sales volume and decline rate, Mercedes-Benz ranked last among the BBA trio.

Statistics indicate that in the first half of this year, BBA collectively sold over 200,000 fewer vehicles in the domestic market. But who exactly captured these market shares? The answer is evident, and I believe you can guess. Finally, it's worth discussing whether you believe BBA has fallen into a 'vicious cycle' of declining sales despite increasing price reductions in the domestic market. Feel free to leave a comment in the comment section to share your thoughts.

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