Here's one from the sales charts we're not used to seeing. Over at Hyundai, sedans are on fire. Sales of the Elantra were up 7% in May, and the numbers for the midsize Sonata were up 39%. Hyundai credits the gains to buyers looking at more affordable options, but a look at other spots in the brand's lineup suggests that might not be the whole story. Hyundai's Sedans Flying Off Lots Hyundai With sales of the Elantra sedan up 7% to 16,819 last month and up 4% to 64,660 on the year, the compact sedan is doing business. It's not enough to catch the Tucson, Hyundai's best-seller, but it is enough to keep it in second place. Sales of the hybrid specifically were up 29%, setting a new May record for that model.Sales of the Sonata fired up 39% to 8,456 units in May, and are up 8% to 30,108 on the year. Sonata Hybrid sales were up 250%, showing that buyers in that slightly larger sedan segment are desperate to save some fuel.However, Hyundai's cheapest model didn't do quite so well. Sales of the Venue, which at $22,650 including freight is the cheapest new vehicle in the US, were down 27% to 3,159. The Kona, which starts from around the same price as the Elantra and offers AWD, saw sales down 22% to 6,036. Buyers Making 'Shift Toward Affordability' Hyundai Hyundai Motor North America president and CEO Randy Parker told CarBuzz that "we've definitely seen a shift toward affordability," when talking about the sales results. The company told us that it was scaling up production of its sedans to help address that. While sedans aren't the cheapest models in Hyundai's lineup, they are less expensive than SUVs of a similar size and spec.Parker said that "the market remains resilient, with solid underlying demand even as customers continue to navigate affordability pressures." Those affordability pressures include inflation in April that was the highest since May 2023, as well as gas prices that are 50% higher than a year ago. Ioniq 6 Is Heading Into The Sunset The only Hyundai sedan that flopped last month was the Ioniq 6 EV. That drop from 1,197 last May to 176 this year is more of an expectation than a surprise, though. Hyundai axed the model from the US market a few months back, and has been selling out remaining inventory since. The Ioniq 5 EV posting its best-ever May sales shows that demand is still there for the company's EVs.Affordability will likely remain the main factor driving the market for the rest of the year. With new vehicle prices at or near record highs and a record number of buyers behind on their loans, buyers are clearly stretched thin.CarBuzz reported recently that North American vehicle production will be its lowest this year since COVID-19, and well below the 2016 high of 17.8 million units. Lowered production, even when it is a predictor of lower sales, will eventually result in lower sales. Those continuing to produce, like Hyundai said it is doing with sedans, may be able to capitalize.
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