By Justin Berkowitz
October 1, 2008
Hyundai is reporting that it too was burned in September. Sonata sales were the only area of increase, with a jump of some 31.7 percent, to a total of 8,629 for September. (The nasty little asterisk is that the Sonata is so heavily sold to fleet that Hyundai no longer breaks out the actual number of cars that end up in rental and big company parking lots.) The tiny, cheap, and fairly frugal Accent dipped from 3,120 last September to 3,014 this past month. Not entirely surprising– with financing in such short supply– shoppers for a $12k car are frequently not the most desirable loan candidates for panicking banks. The Elantra also fell off a cliff, dropping 48.6 percent from 7,164 last September to 3,681 now. Don’t even mention the SUVs, which might as well have been taken out back and shot. The Santa Fe plummeted from 7,496 to 4,676. The Tuscon also collapsed, dropping from 3,693 last September to a paltry 1,294 this month. If you take the new Genesis out of the equation, which wasn’t on sale last year and replaced no model, Hyundai would actually be down more like 28.5 percent. So much for buying cheap for keeps.
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October 1st, 2008 at 2:32 pm
The price increases Hyundai had to implement because of exchange rates hurt Hyundai across the board.
No one had a good September, that is for sure.
October 1st, 2008 at 2:35 pm
With all that’s happening, it’s not surprising. People aren’t buying anything anymore, not just Hyundais. They are not bad vehicles at all, and as for the Sonata, which is probably their best seller, it’s a pretty good vehicle, especially in its 2009 incarnation. It’s just a sign of the times, and a bad economy.
October 1st, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Keep in mind the Accent and Elantra don’t get very good gas mileage when compared to their competition. On top of that, Sonatas can be had with massive incentives. Why by a 13.5k Elantra when you can get a 15k Sonata (with almost equivalent mileage)?
October 1st, 2008 at 3:38 pm
“No one had a good September, that is for sure”
I think you’re right. Everyone I’ve looked at is down, a lot…
Even the infallible Honda.
October 1st, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Honda’s monthly sales showed a decrease of 24% from last September’s totals. It looks like there is plenty of misery to go around.
October 1st, 2008 at 8:35 pm
I recently test drove a new Elantra, and while I was impressed with the interior and engine, the steering and handling were probably the worst I’ve experienced in a new car. People bust on Toyota for their steering and handling, and the new Corolla’s steering is pretty whacked, but the Elantra is just terrible.
October 1st, 2008 at 11:24 pm
Hyundai’s sales were down 26.4%, not 25.4%
42,148 in September 2008; 57,301 in September 2007.
The September 2008 number is 73.6% of the September 2007 number, so it’s 26.4% lower.