BMW was able to top other luxury automakers in May, improving on its sales totals year-on-year and widening its lead for 2011.

The German automaker has found itself atop the luxury segment after Lexus' fall from grace toward the end of 2010. Since then, it's been all Germany, as BMW and Mercedes-Benz have been neck-and-neck for the sales lead.

"BMW and Mercedes-Benz clearly will be on a photo finish for the rest of the year," Jesse Toprak of TrueCar told Bloomberg. "Lexus, for the first time in many years, is clearly out of the running for the top spot."

May could prove to be a critical month for BMW, as it allowed the automaker to extend its lead over its close rival Mercedes. BMW sold 20,651 vehicles in May, a 16 percent increase over the previous year. That brought the automaker's year-to-date total up to 92,068, just beating Mercedes at 90,274 and trouncing former leader Lexus at 77,237.

Big sellers for BMW include the company's lineup of SUVs as well as the 5-Series sedan.

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