Sonata hybrid No. 2 best seller in U.S.

The hybrid version of the Sonata sedan, made by Korea’s leading carmaker Hyundai Motor Co., ranked as the second best seller in the U.S. hybrid car market in June, industry sources said Tuesday.

Sales data from Hyundai and U.S.-based automotive media showed the Sonata’s sales reached 1,422 last month compared to 4,340 for the Prius, which has effectively dominated the global hybrid car market since its release in 1997.

The Sonata hybrid that first reached U.S. consumers in April has a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine mated to a six-speed automatic transmission and a electric motor drive powered by a lithium-polymer battery that gives a total output of 209 horsepower. The manufacturer said the car can run 21 kilometers on one liter of fuel.

Despite trailing the Prius, the Sonata hybrid outpaced other rivals such as Honda’s Insight and CR-Z, the Ford Fusion and other Toyota hybrids.

Last month’s second-place ranking is also noteworthy because the Sonata’s sales clearly surpassed Toyota’s Camry hybrid, which is also in the same mid-size sedan segment, Hyundai said. Camry sales stood at just 449 units in the cited month.

Hyundai, meanwhile, said that it sold a total of 3,445 Sonata hybrids in the United States, with sales of the K5 hybrid, made by its sister company Kia Motors Corp., reaching 103 units. 

(Yonhap News)