Audi May sales offers more evidence that the American 1% continues to buy high-priced cars at record rates. The Volkswagen unit’s May U.S. sales rose 25.5% to 16,601. Volkswagen claims the number is not only a record for May, but the second best sales month in the company’s history. Audi management should be even more gratified because the increase is much greater than that of arch rivals BMW and Mercedes.

Audi continues to trail its two German rivals, but by much less. Mercedes sold 28,881 cars and light trucks in the United States in May, up by 8.8%. BMW sold 29,602, or up 17.3%. Audi has successfully repositioned itself from a maker of expensive four-wheel drive cars to a broad model line luxury car manufacturer.

Ironically, most of Audi’s success mirrors that of Mercedes and BMW. Each has introduced relatively inexpensive entry models, which generally sell for under $35,000. Sales of the new Audi A3 reached 2,261 in May 2014, up from only 15 in May 2013. The base price of the A3 sedan is $29,900. That puts it squarely in line with the Mercedes-Benz CLA, which has a base price of $29,900, and the 2-Series BMW, which begins at $32,100.

Audi management was not shy about the success of the relatively inexpensive car:

“Within a few weeks of its launch, the all-new A3 sedan has established itself as a core contributor to the Audi U.S. success story,” said Mark Del Rosso, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Audi of America.

Audi had two other models that posted sales increases of more than 20% compared to May 2013. The first of these is the A6 mid-sized sedan, with a base price of $43,100. Audi sold 2,151 of these in May, up 21.7%. As is the case with all luxury cars, buyers can add thousands of dollars in extras. The extras for the A6 range from night vision to lane departure warning or LED lights. It is not hard to get the price of the A6 close to $70,000.

Audi’s other real success for May was the A7, a niche product. Its sales rose 22.8% to 861. The A7 is well into the range of the luxury price category. Fully loaded, it is an $80,000 car.

Audi bested Mercedes and BMW in one more category last month. According to the Kelley Blue Book, Audi’s average transaction price rose 0.8% in May to $51,696. Mercedes’ fell 0.1% to $58,669 between the two months, and BMW’s dropped by 2.3% to $52,104.

Audi management, which has successfully repositioned the company as a broad luxury manufacturer, is pushing its image further. Audi wants the industry to believe that its sales can overtake those of Mercedes and BMW in the United States.

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