Monthly sales totals from carmakers such as Toyota, Honda, Subaru, Hyundai and Kia dropped as slim inventories continued to hobble manufacturers’ efforts to gain momentum even as consumers show growing interest in electric vehicles.
American Honda reported a sales decline of 41% in April. Acura sales were down 38% and Honda brand sales fell 42% due to supply shortages, the company said.
Subaru of America Inc. reported 45,748 vehicle sales for April 2022, a 25.5% decrease compared with April 2021 (61,389), the best April in the company’s history.
Toyota Motor North America, which has been hit by shortages of components at factories in Japan and North America, reported April 2022 U.S. sales of 184,960 vehicles, down 22.7% on a volume basis. Toyota Division sales for the month totaled 162,664 vehicles: a decline of 23.1 percent. Meanwhile Lexus Division sales for the month totaled 22,296 vehicles, which was a slide of 17.5 percent.
TMNA’s April 2022 electrified sales totaled 47,431 vehicles, down 16 percent. April’s electrified vehicle sales represent 25.6% of total TMNA sales versus 23.6% in April 2021. So far this year, electrified vehicle sales represent 25.8% of total TMNA sales compared 23.1% during the same period in 2021.
Kia, Hyundai continue see sales drop
Hyundai Motor America reported April retail sales of 61,668 units, its second-best April retail sales month in its history. But overall Hyundai reported its sales dropped 20% in April.
Electrified vehicle year-over-year retail sales increased 68% in April. Hyundai had no fleet sales in April 2022. Elantra Hybrid, Santa Fe Hybrid, Palisade and Nexo set new April records, while it was the best month ever for Santa Cruz.
“This was our second-best retail April ever as we worked overtime to meet robust consumer demand,” said Randy Parker, senior vice president, national sales, Hyundai Motor America. “Even with the challenges facing our industry, we were able to exceed the pre-pandemic total and retail sales of April 2019. Even more, our World Car of the Year Ioniq 5 and robust line-up of hybrid and plug-in hybrid models led to significantly increased electrified vehicle sales.”
Kia America also reported a 15.8% drop in sales. Kia announced April sales of 59,063 units, marking the brand’s best-ever April sales total for EV models and pushing the total number of Kia vehicles sold in the U.S. past the 10 million mark. In addition, the Sportage SUV, now in its 5th generation as the brand’s longest-running nameplate, achieved its best-ever April sales total with 11,380 units sold.
Overall, electrified models recorded their fourth consecutive same-month sales record, with EV sales reaching 14th consecutive same-month sales record and surpassing the April 2021 mark by more than 480 percent.
Kia America also registered its 10 millionth sale in the US since deliveries to buyers began in 1993. Additional details on this historic achievement will follow later this month.
“Kia’s proud history and exciting future are both on display this month as we mark the 10 millionth Kia vehicle sold in the U.S. at the same time that we are experiencing an increase in sales of our electrified vehicles — all in spite of the challenges facing the industry overall,” said Eric Watson, vice president, sales operations, Kia America.
“Our enduring success with electrified models, coupled with a strong start of sales for the all-new 5th generation Sportage SUV, solidifies Kia’s leadership position in two of the most popular and important segments in today’s market,” Watson said.
Substantial change from last year
“The April sales pace may look disappointing compared with April 2021,” said Thomas King, president of J.D. Power’s data and analytics. “But last April’s records sales pace was enabled by the combination of extremely strong consumer demand and enough inventory — nearly 1.7 million units — to turn that demand into actual sales.”
Cox Automotive Senior Economist Charlie Chesbrough echoed King’s sentiments, noting that at this time there was an abundance of optimism in the market due to the introduction of the COVID-19 vaccine, plus stimulus checks of $1,400 combined with the actual availability of vehicles pushed the seasonally adjusted annual rate past 18.3 million units — best since the Great Recession in 2008.
“The situation on the ground has not changed significantly for months. Product availability remains constrained, and many customers can only order their vehicles for future delivery,” he said.
“Improved inventory conditions will likely not happen in 2022 as many customers are now waiting for their already reserved vehicles to be built. We expect production volumes to improve in the second half of the year, but fulfilling existing orders may not allow dealer inventory to accumulate in any noticeable way.”