- Hyundai and Kia posted record November sales.
- The EV and electrified lineups of both automakers saw solid increases last month.
It’s safe to say that both Hyundai and Kia are doing pretty well on the all-electric and electrified vehicle front. The two Korean automakers posted best-ever November sales numbers in the United States, thanks in part to their battery-powered model lineup.
Hyundai’s total sales, including combustion, hybrid and electric models, went up 8% last month. However, it’s on the electrified front where the numbers are truly staggering: EVs went up 77% year-over-year, hybrid sales grew by 104% and all electrified model sales (EVs, hybrids and plug-in hybrids) increased by 92%.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 EV went up an impressive 110% year-over-year in November. Sales of the Santa Fe hybrid jumped 64% while the Tucson plug-in hybrid went up 23%. In total, Hyundai Motor America sold 76,008 cars in November–out of these, 4,989 were Ioniq 5s and 1,121 were Ioniq 6s.
Meanwhile, Kia sold 70,107 units last month. That’s a 20% increase over November 2023 and the first-ever November to surpass the 70,000-unit mark stateside. A big part of this success is attributed to the SUV lineup’s sales performance, as well as the significant gains recorded by the automaker’s electrified vehicle lineup.
“Hyundai delivered an exceptional sales month, driven by the strong performance of our EV and hybrid vehicles,” said Randy Parker, CEO of Hyundai Motor America. “Customers continue to be attracted to Hyundai’s diverse vehicle lineup which can meet a variety of customer needs. We also saw significant interest and excitement for the worldwide debut of the U.S.-built IONIQ 9 and we can’t wait to bring it to market next year.”
The all-electric EV6 saw sales climb 46% year-over-year, while the Sportage models (combustion, hybrid and plug-in hybrid) went up 28%. The EV9 electric three-row family sold 2,155 units last month, slightly better than the EV6’s 1,887 units. In total, Kia sold 20,066 EV9s and 19,604 EV6s in the first 11 months in the United States.
“Kia is clearly a brand on the move with world-class ICE and electrified vehicles that far exceed consumer expectations that have helped us achieve back-to-back monthly sales records in Q4,” said Eric Watson, vice president, sales operations, Kia America. “The Telluride has had an immeasurable impact on Kia since launching in 2019, and to reach all-time best monthly sales in 2024 speaks to its enduring appeal. And with five all-new and significantly redesigned vehicles recently unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show, we have no plans of slowing down.”
With an increasing portfolio of electric vehicles, including the Hyundai Ioniq 9 and sporty Kia EV9 GT, the two Korean automakers are on their way to a very good year in sales. However, looking at the numbers posted so far, it’s clear that there is still a long way to go until pure EVs catch up to their combustion and hybrid counterparts. At Hyundai, the combined year-to-date sales of the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 amount to 50,860 units–just 6.7% of the total 758,304 vehicles sold. It’s worth mentioning that the sales of the Kona EV are not reported separately from the rest of the versions, but it’s unlikely it would make a big dent in the big picture.
At Kia, the story is similar: the individual sales of the Niro EV are not reported separately, but the EV6 and EV9 managed to sell 39,670 units combined in the first 11 months–just 5.5% of the total volume of 723,185 cars sold to date.
