????在不久前，當人們談論汽車的時候，多數討論的可能是一些大眾化的市場品牌，比如福特野馬（Mustang）和通用科邁羅（Camaro）哪個好，買多功能休旅車還是買SUV，豐田（Toyota）的品質和日產（Nissan）的設計誰更勝一籌等等。豪華車一般不是討論的主流。而且這個專為富裕階層設計的細分市場往往更關注的是“多”而不是“好”：更多木料，更多皮革，更多鍍鉻，更顯身價。

????如今這個天平正在發生傾斜。大眾化汽車廠商正努力解決利潤變薄、品牌忠誠度轉移和全球競爭加劇等問題，而高端品牌顯示出了后來居上的勢頭。不少高端品牌都創造了創紀錄的銷量，而且還有很多顧客排隊等著提車。豪車品牌推陳出新的力度也超過了以往，而且價格也越來越親民。光是寶馬公司（BMW）2015年就將推出5款新車或換代車型，其中包括兩款首次推出的電動車型。今年的“北美年度風云車”（North American Car of the Year）大獎侯選名單中，有一半車型都來自豪華品牌。[本文中的豪華品牌包括梅塞德斯-奔馳（Mercedes）、寶馬（BMW）、奧迪（Audi）、保時捷（Porsche）、雷克薩斯（Lexus）、英菲尼迪（Infiniti）、捷豹（Jaguar）、路虎（Land Rover）、凱迪拉克（Cadillac）、林肯（Lincoln）、沃爾沃（Volvo）、謳歌（Acura）和特斯拉（Tesla）。]

????到目前為止，豪車市場的大贏家是兩大德國廠商和一家日本廠商。雖然今年七月美國汽車銷量總體只上漲了1%，但豪華車銷量在以雷克薩斯、奔馳、寶馬等為代表的高端品牌的推動下卻躍升了6%。據《汽車新聞》（Automotive News）報道，雖然高端品牌只占到美國汽車市場總份額的10.8%，但今年高端品牌卻貢獻了汽車市場銷量增幅的16%。2014年全年的豪車銷量預計將達到180萬臺，甚至有可能超過2007年183萬臺的歷史紀錄。

????高端品牌的銷量激增，與美國寬松的貨幣政策和低利率的經濟大環境有關，也與“嬰兒潮”一代進入老齡化有關。獨立分析師沃倫?布朗尼指出：“高端品牌會給出很劃算的金融方案和非常有吸引力的租用費。另外，隨著‘嬰兒潮’一代人步入老年，也使他們產生了‘我既然賺了錢，就應該好好享受’的購車心態。我認為這種人口紅利的影響還會持續10年。”

????更大的推動力則來自汽車廠商本身。他們正在以史無前例的速度更新產品線，并且以10年前根本無法想象的方式擴展他們的品牌。比如跑車品牌捷豹正在研發一款緊湊跨界車型，而賓利（Bentley）正在研發一款SUV。這兩家品牌都在復制保時捷的發展軌跡。保時捷的卡宴（Cayenne）SUV和四門版帕納梅拉（Panamera）的銷量已經翻了一番。與此同時，各大高端廠商也不遺余力地開發創新技術，以便讓它的價格物有所值。比如奔馳已經成為輔助駕駛技術的領軍者，而寶馬則積極開展碳纖維研究，捷豹路虎則進一步完善了鋁合金車身框架技術。

????這種新的商業模式也帶來了不少風險，而且這才是剛開始。所有汽車廠商都想從豪車銷售中分一杯羹，像通用汽車（General Motors）這樣的行業巨頭也在對旗下的平價車型進行持續升級，迫使消費者在減配版的凱迪拉克和高配版的雪佛蘭英帕拉（Chevy Impala）之間做選擇。汽車網站Edmunds.com的分析師杰西卡?考德維爾表示：“隨著豪華品牌攜新產品進入平價市場，主流品牌也正在增加車內配置，提高舒適性，因此市場上出現了相互擠壓的情況。現在豪華品牌雖然擁有多年積攢下的家當，但這種優勢并不會永遠持續下去，尤其是購車者最關心的還是車的價值。”

????When you talked cars not long ago, chances are you talked about the mass market brands: Mustang vs. Camaro, minivan or SUV, Toyota quality and Nissan design. Luxury models were an afterthought, a tiny slice of the market designed for the wealthy that was focused on more rather than better: more wood, more leather, more chrome, more status.

????Now the balance is shifting. Mass manufacturers are struggling with skinny margins, shifting loyalties, and global competitors while the makers of high-end cars seem to coast above the fray. They are accumulating record sales and building waiting lists of eager customers. More models bearing luxury brands are coming to market than ever before—and at more accessible price points. BMW alone will bring out five new or redesigned models for 2015, including its first two electrified cars. When the directors of the North American Car of the Year compiled their list of potential candidates for this year’s award, fully half were from luxury manufacturers. (For the purpose of this column, luxury brands include Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Lexus, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Cadillac, Lincoln, Volvo, Acura, and Tesla).

????To date, the big winners have been two German makers and one Japanese. While car sales inched up a mere 1% in July, luxury car sales jumped 6%, led by Lexus, Mercedes, and BMW. This year, high-end brands have accounted for 16% of all sales growth this year, though they represent just 10.8% of the overall market., according to Automotive News. Luxury car sales should top 1.8 million cars and trucks this year and may exceed the all-time high of 1.83 million set in 2007.

????Some of the surge is coming effortlessly from the easy-money, low-interest-rate economy and pig-in-the-python demographics of the aging population. “Luxury brands offer great financing deals, and very attractive lease rates,” says independent analyst Warren Browne. “In addition, the age of the baby boomers supports the ‘I deserve this now that I have made some money’ purchase rationale, and I expect this demographic effect will continue for the next ten years.

????But a bigger push is coming from the manufacturers themselves. They are refreshing their product lines faster than any time in memory and extending their brands in ways that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Few are holding back. Jaguar, a maker of sports cars and sport sedans, is working on a compact crossover, while Bentley is developing an SUV. They are following in the well-established tire tracks of Porsche. The sports car maker has doubled its sales with the Cayenne sport utility and Panamera four-door. At the same time, upscale manufacturers are pioneering new technologies that put substance behind their outsize price premiums. Mercedes is a leader in assisted driving while BMW pioneers carbon fiber research and Jaguar Land Rover perfects techniques in aluminum body structures.

????There are lots of risks associated with this new dynamic business model, and it’s early days. All manufacturers want a share of luxury sales, and giants like General Motors are continuing to upgrade their popular-priced offerings, forcing consumers to choose between a stripped Cadillac and a loaded Chevy Impala. Says Edmunds.com analyst Jessica Caldwell: “As luxury brands move down-market with their product offerings, mainstream brands are increasing content and in-car amenities. As a result, there is a bit of squeeze happening. Right now, luxury brands have a lot of equity built up over the years but that doesn’t last forever especially as car shoppers look for value.”