South Korea’s supercar sales increase ten-fold in 5 years

A black Rolls-Royce car. Illustration photo by Pexels

When expanding the scope to include imported cars costing over 100 million won, a total of 78,208 vehicles were sold last year. This represents an 8.8% increase from the previous year, according to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (Kaida), as cited by Korea JoongAng Daily.

Notably, one in three imported cars in Korea now falls into this high-end category.

Many brands had record-breaking sales, with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars selling a record 276 units in South Korea last year, an 18% increase from the previous year.

This made South Korea surpass Japan to become the number one market in the Asia-Pacific region for the car maker for the first time, a significant shift given that the number of Rolls-Royce vehicles sold in South Korea in 2018 were less than half of that in Japan.

Bentley Motors also saw a strong performance, selling 810 units in South Korea, a 4.3% year-on-year increase, making it the top market for Bentley in Asia.

The British automaker also launched its first Bentley Cube showroom in the country, where the latest models are displayed. The showroom also provides exclusive services for local Bentley owners, including a lounge for private parties and car customization programs.

Automobili Lamborghini sold 431 vehicles in South Korea last year, an 8% increase from the previous year, outpacing sales in its home country of Italy, which sold 409 units, as reported by Business Korea.

South Korea has become Lamborghini’s seventh-largest market, surpassing countries such as Canada, Australia, and France.

Mercedes-Maybach achieved record sales with 2,596 units sold in South Korea last year, a 32% increase from the previous year, making the country the second-largest market for Maybach after China.

The country also remains the world’s top market for the Mercedes E-Class, and Mercedes has chosen Korea as the first country to host its luxury brand center, set to open later this year.

Porsche also recorded a surge in sales in South Korea, with the number of vehicles sold in the country hitting 11,355 units last year, surpassing the 10,000 mark for the first time and representing a 26% increase from the previous year.

The country has also emerged as the world’s leading market for the BMW 5 Series, with the latest model making its global debut there in October last year.