Toyota RAV-4 Named "Top Overall Future Majority Vehicle"

MIAMI, Aug. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ninth Annual Diversity Volume Leadership Awards (DVL) were recently presented by the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD) and S&P Global Mobility during the awards program at the 2024 Annual NAMAD Conference at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel. The DVL Awards celebrates brands that are driving sales leadership with ethnic consumers. The program was sponsored by American Honda.

U.S. Census statistics predict that by the year 2045, ethnic minorities will be the "Future Majority."

"The 'Future Majority' reality continued to be the driving theme throughout this year's Awards ceremony, as the monetary impact of minority vehicle buyers is a significant part of dealer sales. So it's very important that through the DVL Awards, we continue to bring awareness to the lack of diversity-targeted marketing that has improved, but that still remains a critical issue in the automotive industry," said NAMAD Chairman Damon Lester.

During the Awards Program and Conference, NAMAD and S&P Global Mobility partnered to celebrate brands that are driving sales leadership with ethnic consumers. The conference program also addressed and educated the industry about the necessity of a dealer body that reflects the United States' increasingly diverse population. 

Winners of the prestigious DVL Awards demonstrated the highest new retail vehicle registrations with ethnic consumers. This year's awards were based on an analysis of data from S&P Global Mobility representing the period July 2023-June 2024.

"The DVL Awards are representative of the commitment of automakers to ensure their vehicles are marketed to diverse consumers," said Marc Bland, Chief Diversity Officer, S&P Global Mobility. "In just over twenty years, the 'Future Majority' reality will be upon us. We're honored to recognize these top models and their respective brands in support of their efforts to reach the rapidly changing demographic of vehicle consumers." 

This year, 24 different brands were finalists for DVL Awards, with 11 different brands receiving awards in the following categories:

• Fourteen Non-Luxury Awards
• Ten Luxury Awards
• One Non-Luxury Hybrid Award
• One Luxury Hybrid Award
• One Non-Luxury Battery Electric Vehicle
• One Luxury Battery Electric Vehicle Award
• Top Overall Future Majority Luxury Vehicle 
• Top Overall Future Majority Vehicle

The 2024 awards saw new categories for Battery Electric Vehicles, created to accommodate the growing consumer interest in electric vehicles in the US market. 

This year, NAMAD and S&P Global Mobility honored Toyota Motor North America's RAV4 with the "Top Overall Future Majority Vehicle" DVL Award, one of sixteen awards presented to Toyota/Lexus during the program. This award is the most sought-after DVL Awards honor for automotive brands dedicated to driving sales leadership within Asian, Native American, Hispanic and African-American car buyers combined.

Following is the complete list of this year's DVL Award-winning models :

NON-LUXURY AWARDEES

Sub-Compact Car: Nissan Versa

Compact Car: Honda Civic

Mid-Size Car: Toyota Camry

Sport and Mid-Size Sports Car: Ford Mustang

Full-Size Car: Dodge Charger

Sub-Compact Utility: Honda HR-V

Compact CUV and SUV: Toyota RAV4

Mid-Size CUV and SUV: Toyota Highlander

Mid-Size Van: Toyota Sienna

Compact to One-Ton Van: Mercedes-Benz Sprinter

Compact to Mid-Size Pickup Truck: Toyota Tacoma

Three-Quarter to One-Ton Pickup Truck: Chevrolet Silverado

Half-Ton Pickup Truck: Chevrolet Silverado

Full-Size SUV: Chevrolet Tahoe

Non-Luxury Battery Electric Vehicle: Volkswagen ID4

Non-Luxury Hybrid: Toyota RAV-4

LUXURY AWARDEES

Luxury Sub-Compact Car: Acura Integra

Luxury Compact Car: Lexus IS

Luxury Mid-Size Car: Lexus ES

Luxury Full-Size Car: Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Luxury Exotic, Prestige Full-Size and Sports Car: Chevrolet Corvette

Luxury Sub-Compact CUV: BMW X1

Luxury Compact CUV: Lexus NX

Luxury Mid-Size CUV: Lexus RX

Luxury Mid-Size SUV: BMW IX

Luxury Full-Size SUV: BMW X7

Luxury Hybrid: Lexus NX

Luxury Battery Operated EV: BMW I4

TOP AWARDEES

Top Overall Future Majority Luxury Vehicle: Lexus RX

Top Overall Future Majority Vehicle: Toyota RAV4

The cumulative list of Award-winners is as follows:

• Toyota/Lexus - Sixteen (16) DVL Awards
• General Motors (Chevrolet) - Four (4) DVL Awards
• Mercedes-Benz - Two (2) DVL Awards
• Honda/Acura - Two (2) DVL Awards
• Nissan – One (1) DVL Award
• Stellantis (Dodge) - One (1) DVL Award
• Ford – One (1) DVL Award
• BMW - Four (4) DVL Awards
• Volkswagen – One (1) DVL Award

It is important to note that several finalists that did not receive awards were still extremely competitive contenders. For example, in the Compact Car segment, the Honda Civic outpaced the Toyota Corolla by less than 100 registrations. Also important to note is that part of the criteria for DVL Award recognition is having an active dealer network, which eliminated Tesla from consideration. Lucid received its first nomination this year, with the Lucid Air garnering third-place in the Full-Size Luxury Car segment.

Award winners have proven their marketing strategies are working toward the goal of reaching the Future Majority for 2024 and beyond.

About The National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers

The National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers' (NAMAD) objective is to pursue the meaningful presence and participation of minority businesses and diverse employees across all aspects of the automotive economic sector, including:

• Increasing the number of minority-owned dealerships in communities across America
• Advocating workplace and supplier diversity in the automotive manufacturing environment
• Advocating diversity in OEM marketing efforts
• Supporting minority engagement in the automotive retail sales and service sectors

NAMAD is committed to developing strategic relationships and advocating for the advancement of business policies and practices that ensure diversity and economic parity remain a priority in all aspects of the American automotive industry.

NAMAD is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area. For information on National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers visit: www.namad.org

About S&P Global Mobility

At S&P Global Mobility, we provide invaluable insights derived from unmatched automotive data, enabling our customers to anticipate change and make decisions with conviction. Our expertise helps them to optimize their businesses, reach the right consumers, and shape the future of mobility. We open the door to automotive innovation, revealing the buying patterns of today and helping customers plan for the emerging technologies of tomorrow.

S&P Global Mobility is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI). S&P Global is the world's foremost provider of credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity and automotive markets. With every one of our offerings, we help many of the world's leading organizations navigate the economic landscape so they can plan for tomorrow, today. For more information, visit www.spglobal.com/mobility.

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SOURCE National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD)