June Sales: Subcompacts And Small Hatches

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

Kia’s Soul didn’t have the most electrifying launch sales-wise, but with the release of its second buzz-worthy ad, the funky little box is becoming a major player in our A/B/Small Hatch segment. The Nissan Versa is clearly the dominant player here, selling nearly twice as well as the Soul. Meanwhile, there’s a tight pack of offerings that have moved at least 20k units this year, that ranges from the aged HHR to the MINI Cooper. Look for a big shake-up in this segment once Ford’s Fiesta production hits high gear.

Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Tosh Tosh on Jul 08, 2010

    It's confusing to have the Golf on this list when the Mazda 3, Civic, and Corolla/Matrix are not.

    • Syke Syke on Jul 08, 2010

      And that's the problem: To keep the figures even you'd have to split the Matrix sales from Corolla (which I believe Toyota doesn't), and somehow split the Mazda3 five-door sales from the four-door (which Mazda definitely doesn't), and I don't think the Civic comes in a hatchback. Either that, or, combine Golf/Jetta to even it up, and destroy the whole basis for the graph in the first place.

  • Mtymsi Mtymsi on Jul 08, 2010

    My guess is that Ford will dominate this segment by a wide margin very shortly.

    • See 4 previous
    • SV SV on Jul 08, 2010

      I don't think the Fiesta will necessarily outsell the Versa, which is appealing for the reasons psarhjinian mentioned, but I do think it has a good chance of outselling the Fit and Yaris (whose sales are much softer than I thought they were). Certainly selling 1,000 units with less than a week of availability is a very good sign. The Versa is in many ways the Impala of its segment: cheap, reliable, simple, comfortable. Not as outdated certainly, but still it has low enthusiast and high mainstream appeal. And for that reason, it sells in huge numbers relative to its peers (though I suspect alot of those numbers are fleet). The Fiesta meanwhile is counting on being "premium" and "trendy" and while that seems to be working out for Ford, I think that marketing approach and its small, sporty design narrow its appeal compared with the Nissan.

  • MLS MLS on Jul 08, 2010

    Only 5,000 PT Cruisers sold so far this year? Ouch. I know the thing is old, but didn't Chrysler manage to move 100K+ per year back in the day?

  • David C. Holzman David C. Holzman on Jul 08, 2010

    The Caliber in fifth place? ahead of the Fit, the MINI, the Golf??? Sick, I tell you.

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    • TrailerTrash TrailerTrash on Jul 09, 2010

      Not even sure Why the Caliber is even on this list. It is not that small a hatch, is it? I think it's even larger than the Mazda3.

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