IRVINE, Calif. -

With the holiday season in full swing, it’s not just toy stores and shopping malls reaping the rewards. It also appears two particular segments of the used-car market are seeing some nice gains, as well.

According to the latest Hot Used-Car Report from Kelley Blue Book, luxury SUVs and premium luxury cars have seen the most month-over-month growth when measuring the share of research activity.

Luxury SUVs have increased their share by 6.4 percent, while premium luxury cars are up 5 percent.

“The holidays are here, and shoppers are spending their merry time researching luxury vehicles. At this time of year, shoppers are willing to open up their wallets and splurge,” said Arthur Henry, manager of market intelligence and market analyst at KBB. “Dealers also are offering outrageous deals to help clear out their inventories in December.”

Henry also pointed out that catalysts to this growth have been the Land Rover LR2 and the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class.

In fact, on KBB’s list of top 10 models for monthly used-car shopping activity growth, the 2010 LR2 ranked No. 2 with 52.7 percent month-over-month growth in share, while the 2006 SL Class was fourth with 40.3-percent growth.

“The base 2010 Land Rover LR2 currently is valued near $26,000, roughly $10,000 cheaper than the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of a new 2012,” Henry said. “Experts on KBB.com praise the LR2 for its off-road performance, while consumers gravitate toward its styling and driving comforts.”

As for the SL-Class, he said: “The base trim of the luxury sports car has an estimated retail value of $26,000. Current owners are enamored with the roadster, rating it an 8.9 out of 10.”

Breaking the rankings of vehicle classes down further, the minivan segment (up 5 percent) was also close to the top and was followed by full-size SUVs (up 4 percent). Compact luxury cars (up 2.9 percent) rounded out the top five.

On the top 10 list for the individual models, No. 1 was the 2006 Volkswagen Phaeton (up 101.5 percent). After the LR2 was the 2010 Nissan Pathfinder in the No. 3 spot (up 47.8 percent).

Coming in fifth was the 2006 Toyota Matrix (up 35.0 percent), followed by the 2008 Nissan Pathfinder (up 26.3 percent), 2010 Audi Q5 (up 25.1 percent) and 2010 Toyota Sienna (up 24.0), respectively.

Rounding out the top 10 were the 2007 Honda Odyssey (up 16.2 percent) and 2010 Ford F-150 (up 5.9 percent).