Toyota RAV4 Leads Compact Crossover Sales, but Is the Segment Cooling Off? [Sales Report]

2016 Toyota RAV4 Limited
2016 Toyota RAV4 Limited

Toyota’s RAV4 led compact crossover sales again in April, but a surprising amount of negative numbers might mean the segment is cooling off.

The RAV4 had nearly a 32 percent increase in sales for the month and an 18 percent increase for the year to extend its lead over 2015’s leader, the Honda CR-V.

The Honda’s sales were down 1.8 percent for the month and 2.4 percent for the year, but it wasn’t the only competitor to take a loss. Four out of the top six selling compact crossovers had sales drops over April 2015, including strong sellers like the Chevrolet Equinox and the Jeep Cherokee.

The fourth-place Nissan Rogue was the only other top contender to see a sales increase, netting a 6.5-percent gain for the month and a 6.9-percent increase for the year.

Could these negative numbers signal that the compact crossover sales might be plateauing? Start the conversation in the comments below.

2016 Hyundai Tucson
2016 Hyundai Tucson

Further down the list, there are some surprises, the top one being the aging Jeep Compass. While it wasn’t able to overtake its sister car, the Patriot, it was as close as it’s ever been and was up 128 percent over April 2015. For the year, the Compass’ sales are up 62 percent while the Patriot’s sales are flat.

The all-new Hyundai Tucson continues to obliterate the sales numbers of its frumpy predecessor, gaining 92 percent for the month and a class-leading 83 percent for the year.

Check out the full list below.

Compact Crossover Sales – April 2016

Apr 2016 # Mar 2016 # Apr ’16/Mar ’16 % Apr 2016/2015 YTD 2016 # YTD 2016/2015 %
Toyota RAV4 30,152 29,045 3.8% 31.6% 106,274 18.2%
Honda CR-V 28,913 26,730 8.2% -1.8% 100,101 -2.4%
Ford Escape 23,920 28,521 -16.1% -7.2% 95,514 2.7%
Nissan Rogue 23,173 27,713 -16.4% 6.5% 92,209 6.9%
Chevrolet Equinox 20,607 21,480 -4.1% -28.6% 80,486 -14.8%
Jeep Cherokee 17,667 19,170 -7.8% -7.0% 67,201 0.0%
Subaru Forester 14,490 14,284 1.4% 3.7% 52,917 2.5%
Jeep Patriot 10,456 9,837 6.3% 10.0% 39,203 0.0%
Jeep Compass 9,421 8,282 13.8% 128.0% 29,995 62.0%
Mazda CX-5 8,826 8,965 -1.6% -1.5% 32,433 -2.5%
Hyundai Tucson 7,718 7,830 -1.4% 92.0% 28,102 83.2%
Kia Sportage 7,645 6,804 12.4% 79.0% 17,467 57.8%
GMC Terrain 7,344 6,891 6.6% -16.5% 31,302 -14.3%
Dodge Journey 4,865 9,986 -51.3% -44.0% 31,286 -4.0%
VW Tiguan 3,804 3,519 8.1% 58.4% 13,096 63.8%
Mitsubishi Outlander 2,729 2,156 26.6% 117.6% 8,549 69.4%

Check out this TFLcar mashup video of the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid taking on the Jeep Grand Cherokee diesel: