On the Dash:
- Kia and Hyundai both posted their best-ever July sales, driven by strong SUV and hybrid demand.
- Hybrid models now make up a growing share of retail sales, with electrified vehicles accounting for a third of Hyundai’s July business.
- Dealers should stock up on top performers like the Tucson, Seltos, Telluride and Sportage as both brands lean further into hybrid and electrified lineups.
Kia America and Hyundai Motor America both posted their best July sales in company history last month, extending a run of strong results for the Korean automakers even as hybrid and SUV demand continues to outperform a slower broader industry.
Kia sets fourth straight annual sales record
Kia sold 75,857 vehicles in July, up 7% year over year and the brand’s best July on record. Sales through Kia retailers rose 8% year over year. Through July, Kia has sold 506,584 vehicles, up 4% from the same period last year, putting the brand on pace for a fourth consecutive annual sales record.
Six Kia models set July sales records, including:
- Sportage hybrid, up 76%
- Seltos, up 61%
- Carnival hybrid up 16%
- Sorento hybrid up 16%
- Telluride, up 13%
- K4, up 8%.
Notably, Kia’s hybrid sales climbed 108% year over year, while its broader electrified lineup grew 52%.
Eric Watson, VP of Sales Operations for Kia America, credited the results to demand across the brand’s full lineup. He said Kia’s ability to keep setting records despite a tepid industry reflects the strength of its product lineup and sustained consumer demand, and pointed to the new Seltos, the redesigned Telluride and the upcoming all-electric EV3 as reasons for continued momentum in the second half of the year.
The automaker also highlighted the redesigned 2027 Seltos, introduced to media in Newport Beach in mid-July, and confirmed that Newsweek named the 2027 Telluride one of its “Best New SUVs” in its 2026 Readers’ Choice Awards. The brand and its dealer network also raised more than $4.7 million for nonprofit organizations in 2025 through Kia’s “Accelerate the Good” Dealer Match program, including more than $1.5 million each to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and No Kid Hungry.
Hyundai posts best-ever July
Hyundai sold 82,480 vehicles in July, up 4% year over year and the brand’s best July in company history. Year to date, Hyundai has sold 533,048 vehicles, up 3% from a year earlier.
The Tucson family posted its best-ever July, with sales rising 20% year over year, as strength across Hyundai’s SUV lineup reinforced the brand’s balance of cars, SUVs and electrified vehicles. Hybrid sales rose 35% year over year, led by record July performances from the Sonata HEV, up 85%, the Elantra HEV, up 13%, and the Tucson HEV, up 5%. Hyundai said this marked its best-ever July for hybrid sales and for total electrified vehicle sales, with electrified models now accounting for a third of all retail sales.
Randy Parker, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor North America, said the July results show the growing appeal of the brand’s hybrid-powered SUVs. He said Tucson and Elantra continued to lead the lineup, while hybrid models across the brand helped push electrified vehicles to a third of retail sales, adding that Hyundai’s balanced portfolio of cars, SUVs and electrified vehicles keeps resonating with customers.
Why it matters
Both results point to the same trend for dealers heading into the second half of the year. Hybrid and SUV demand continues to carry sales even as the broader new-vehicle market cools, and both brands are leaning further into electrified lineups to keep the momentum going. Dealers stocking Kia’s Sportage, Seltos, Sorento and Carnival hybrids, and Hyundai’s Tucson, Sonata and Elantra HEV models, are positioned to capture a growing share of buyers who want efficiency without giving up SUV space or features.
