People shopping for cars on ForbesAutos.com finished off 2007 looking far ahead. During the fourth quarter, three vehicles not even on sale yet were among the top 10 most researched luxury vehicles on the site.

Two of the future models, the 2009 BMW M3 and 2009 Jaguar XF , ranked No. 1 and No. 3, respectively. The third '09 model, Audi's upcoming remake of its best-selling A4 Sedan, earned sixth place in the popularity contest for October, November, and December, despite not going on sale until the fall.


The rest of the entries on our latest list of vehicles most researched on ForbesAutos.com were consistent with those for previous periods.

European brands dominated once again. The BMW 3 Series Sedan and Coupe, 7 Series, , and Mercedes-Benz S-Class all made repeat appearances. BMW alone had five models among the top 10, owning half of the high-hit list for the third straight quarter. Meanwhile, the two non-European models that made the ranking three months earlier, the Acura MDX SUV and the Acura TL sedan, fell off the list entirely.

After reigning as the most researched model for six months, the high-priced Mercedes-Benz S-Class slipped to No. 2. That's still plenty popular. Mercedes-Benz spokesperson Robert Moran attributes the high volume of research to S-Class features that invite curiosity.

“There are a number of advanced features on the car that others don't have,” Moran says. “It's a tour de force of technical innovation,” he says, with unique systems like night-view assist, which uses an infrared camera to project an image of the road ahead on the navigation screen. Moran also cited the S-Class's adaptive brake lights, designed to flash rapidly during panic stops to reduce rear-end collisions. There's also the S-Class's optional Distronic Plus adaptive cruise control that tells the car to automatically mash the brakes when it detects an impending crash.

At No. 9, the all-new Mercedes C-Class broke onto the list from the lower end of the luxury-car spectrum. “We're selling them at a clip of almost 5,000 per month," Mercedes' Moran says. "As of December, we had a 14-day supply, which is basically as low as you can go” with new-car inventory.

The C-Class' popularity isn't unexpected: sales usually spike for newly released models, particularly for luxury vehicles. “These buyers tend to be more fashion-sensitive," says Rebecca Lindland, director of automotive industry research for Global Insight, a market analysis firm. "When a new model comes out, that's going to help the segment. But when some of the more popular vehicles age, you can see a decline.”

Accordingly, Lindland expects a small decline in the 'high-premium' segment as consumers wait for a new BMW 7 Series to come out. At the same time, recent and pending introductions in the midsize luxury-car segment — including the Cadillac CTS, Jaguar XF, and Lincoln MKS — as well as in the luxury crossover-utility-vehicle segment — BMW X6 — should stimulate sales in those categories, she says.

BMW sales in the United States grew by about 7 percent in 2007, according to market trackers Autodata. That's a strong performance under any circumstances, but especially in a year when overall vehicle sales shrunk by 2.5 percent.

Upcoming introductions of the 1 Series, X6, and diesel versions of the 3 Series and X5 will bolster the BMW's prospects in 2008, says Jan Ehlen, BMW business communications manager. But he, like many industry insiders, expects sales to soften in 2008.

“For 2008, we are realistic,” Ehlen says. “At a minimum, we want to maintain our sales volume in an insecure market. Premium products are still in a better position, but we cannot totally neglect the status of the economy. On top of that, 2008 is an election year,” he says, a time when customers tend to grow cautious.


Still, the luxury-car market is better poised for continued growth because wealthy consumers generally don't feel pinched by market fluctuations, such as higher energy prices or a mortgage meltdown, says Global Insight's Lindland. “These are people in a very good financial position. They're more insulated. They're going to buy that new BMW no matter what's going on in the economy,” she says.