Hyundai Motor America set new sales milestones last year, with the Hyundai brand hitting a new retail sales record and the Genesis luxury brand more than tripling deliveries for an all-time peak.
Hyundai struggled in the fourth quarter because of dwindling inventories, with sales falling 15 percent to 152,446. For the year, deliveries rose 19 percent to 738,081, the company's third-best showing. Retail sales reached an all-time high of 694,349 in 2021, up 23 percent, Hyundai said Tuesday.
Genesis, which launched its first two crossovers in the last 14 months, saw a gain of 200 percent in the fourth quarter, with sales of 15,301. For the year, Genesis volume more than tripled to 49,621.
In December, Hyundai posted U.S. sales of 51,340, down 23 percent, and Genesis delivered 4,999 vehicles for a 61 percent rise.
Hyundai said U.S. fleet sales in 2021 fell 24 percent and represented 6 percent of overall volume, or just over 44,000.
Notable nameplates: Hyundai Elantra, down 52% in December; Ioniq 5, new model with 153 sales; Tucson, up 17%; Palisade, down 15%; Genesis G70, down 15%; GV70, new model with 1,988 deliveries; GV80, up 19%
Incentives: In the fourth quarter, $1,119 per vehicle, down 54% from a year earlier, according to TrueCar.
Average transaction price: For the fourth quarter, $33,670, up 10% from a year earlier, according to TrueCar.
Quote: "2021 was a highly successful year for the Hyundai brand and our retail partners. We navigated a variety of challenges and sold the most retail units in our history, increasing our retail market share nearly a full point," said Randy Parker, senior vice president of national sales at Hyundai Motor America.
Did you know? Sales of the newly launched Hyundai Santa Cruz pickup hit 3,000 in December amid red-hot demand for the brand's first open-bed truck, according to Hyundai.
