A transitional month for subcompact sales. Most models were up from last month, with the Hyundai Accent leading the pack again with a +13.3% gain from last year at this time.
The most improved last month was the Scion xD, which only lost 2.0% from this time last year. The Kia Rio was the poorest performer compared to last year at this time with a loss of 53.6% compared to July 2008.
Additionally, we have a new best-selling subcompact in the U.S.: The Hyundai Accent took over first place from the Toyota Yaris, which drops to second. The Nissan Versa is the third best seller. The model with the least sales is, again, the Pontiac G3.
Do note the sales of the Kia Soul, which are now at 16,027, surpassing many other vehicles including Nissan Cube, Suzuki SX4, Scion xD, Smart ForTwo, Pontiac G3, and even Kia's own Rio. (I suspect next month we can add the Chevrolet Aveo to the list, too.)
The real anomaly will be next month's results, since the "cash for clunkers" program went into effect. Allegedly, the Honda Fit has been a hot seller under the program. Stay tuned!
| Make/Model | July '09 vs July '08 | Year to date | Cars sold in '09 to date |
| Hyundai Accent | +13.3% | +16.1% | 45,622 |
| Nissan Versa | -2.0% | -25.6% | 40,399 |
| Scion xD | -3.0% | -57.4% | 7,717 |
| MINI (all) | -3.8% | -18.1% | 25,757 |
| Suzuki SX4 | -24.0% | -39.0% | 12,612 |
| Honda Fit | -27.6% | -25.4% | 38,598 |
| Chevrolet Aveo | -31.2% | -55.3% | 16,847 |
| Toyota Yaris | -36.4% | -39.5% | 44,081 |
| Smart (all) | -44.6% | -28.5% | 9,985 |
| Kia Rio | -53.6% | -45.4% | 13,461 |
| Kia Soul | -- | -- | 16,027 |
| Nissan Cube | -- | -- | 7,175 |
| Pontiac G3 | -- | -- | 2,315 |
4 comments:
Crazy how the Soul has done so well. I think they marketed it a bit better than the Nissan Cube and have a good base product to offer. But twice the amount of Souls as Cubes?!
I really like the Soul, and I think the Accent SE is a great little car as well.
One subcompact which I strongly dislike is the Nissan Versa. I had one as a rental and I didn't enjoy it very much. It wasn't much fun to drive. The Cube is neat looking, but I personally think its looks is all it has going for it.
Fortunately for Hyundai, car buyers aren't paying much attention to the low ratings JD Powers and others give the Accent.....they actually drive the car, look it over, and see for themselves. Accent sales, and new owner reviews reflect that. There remains some prejudice against Hyundai, and especially the Accent, which results in this nice little car being dismissed without consideration. The car is popular, and will remain popular, because it's as good or better than the other subcompacts, with a better warranty.
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