Hyundai-Kia Leads Small Car Market in U.S. for 1st Time

Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group topped the small car market in the U.S. for the first time in the first quarter of this year, slightly outpacing Toyota.

The Korean automakers sold a combined 81,424 small cars there in the three month period on the back of strong sales of the new Hyundai Elantra (Avante in Korea) and Kia Soul, compared to Toyota's 81,418. Kia's Forte compact also showed a steady rise in the U.S., with its market share rising from 12.5 percent in 2009 to 16.7 percent.
"The new Optima has been very popular since its launch in the U.S. early this year, while sales of Japanese cars have been sluggish amid the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami," Prof. Park Chan-hee of Chungang University said.

With its sleek style and high fuel efficiency of over 14km/l, the Optima has been well received in the U.S. Independent consumer watchdog Consumer Reports on Wednesday named the Optima its top pick in the small car category.


Hyundai and Kia also achieved record performance in the overall U.S. car market in March, with sales jumping 32 percent to a combined 106,000 cars, taking up 8.5 percent of the market. By contrast, Toyota saw its market share fall to 14.1 percent from 17 percent a year ago, with sales of 176,000 cars in March