Hyundai sales up 4%; higher output imminent
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LOS ANGELES -- Hyundai Motor America sales rose 4 percent in July, and the brand said growth was limited by short supplies of high-volume nameplates.
It said more Elantras, Sonatas and Santa Fes will arrive in coming months as production increases at plants in Alabama and Georgia.
Hyundai sales totaled 62,021 in July.
Hyundai had a 27-day supply of vehicles at the close of July sales. Supplies of the Elantra and Sonata, which together account for about 60 percent of Hyundai's total U.S. volume, were even tighter: 19 days for the Sonata and 17 days for the Elantra.
Through July, Hyundai sales totaled 418,690, up 10 percent from last year while the market grew about 9 percent.
"With the imminent addition of the third shift at our plant in Alabama increasing Elantra and Sonata production, and the launch of the new Santa Fe in Georgia under way right now, we'll be better able to meet demand for our core products in the coming months," John Krafcik, CEO of Hyundai Motor America, said in a statement.
Hyundai expects an extra 20,000 combined units of Sonata and Elantra production in Montgomery, Ala., by year end after adding the third shift in September.
Kia's plant in West Point, Ga., began building the 2013 Santa Fe Sport, which replaces the current Santa Fe, last month. Santa Fe sales fell 43 percent in July to 4,619, a Hyundai spokeswoman said.
The new Elantra GT hatchback and Elantra Coupe, both launched last month and lumped into the Elantra sedan's sales figured, fueled a 22 percent increase in Elantra sales to a combined 18,512 units in July.
You can reach Ryan Beene at rbeene@crain.com. -- Follow Ryan on 
