Photo: Kia
Ever heard of the Seltos? I did when Kia presented it a couple of years ago for the Indian market. Introduced stateside for the 2021 model year, the small utility vehicle was the fastest-selling new car in the U.S. last month.
iSeeCars.com reports that Kia needed 7.7 days on average to sell the Seltos in October, and they made a tidy profit on every single one as well. The average selling price of $27,284 surpasses the recommended starting price of $22,490 for the LX base grade that features all-wheel drive as standard.
“Despite being consistently priced over the manufacturer suggested retail price, there is heightened demand for the relatively affordable subcompact Seltos as fervor for the Kia brand continues to grow,” declared executive analyst Karl Brauer. “As a result of inventory constraints stemming from the microchip shortage, demand outpaced supply,” signed off Brauer.
The rest of the top 20 published by the automotive search engine and research website includes three more Kia nameplates in the guise of the Telluride mid-size crossover (9.8 days on average at an average price of $46,374), Carnival minivan-crossover thingy (12.4 days at $40,065), and K5 mid-size sedan (14.8 days at $29,245). Sister brand Hyundai ranked 18th with the Tucson PHEV (14.6 days on average at $40,623 on average).
As far as used vehicles are concerned, the Honda Insight leads the ranking for October 2021 with 20.5 days and $25,596. The Insight is pretty much a Civic with a hybrid powertrain that returns up to 52 miles to the gallon (make that 4.52 liters per 100 kilometers) on the combined test cycle.
Considering that demand for new and used vehicles continues to dwarf supply and that automakers haven’t solved their microchip woes, the following months will be just as unpredictable as the previous month.
Recent stories from the business media suggest that the shortage could last well into 2023, maybe 2024 based on new delivery orders.
“Despite being consistently priced over the manufacturer suggested retail price, there is heightened demand for the relatively affordable subcompact Seltos as fervor for the Kia brand continues to grow,” declared executive analyst Karl Brauer. “As a result of inventory constraints stemming from the microchip shortage, demand outpaced supply,” signed off Brauer.
The rest of the top 20 published by the automotive search engine and research website includes three more Kia nameplates in the guise of the Telluride mid-size crossover (9.8 days on average at an average price of $46,374), Carnival minivan-crossover thingy (12.4 days at $40,065), and K5 mid-size sedan (14.8 days at $29,245). Sister brand Hyundai ranked 18th with the Tucson PHEV (14.6 days on average at $40,623 on average).
As far as used vehicles are concerned, the Honda Insight leads the ranking for October 2021 with 20.5 days and $25,596. The Insight is pretty much a Civic with a hybrid powertrain that returns up to 52 miles to the gallon (make that 4.52 liters per 100 kilometers) on the combined test cycle.
Considering that demand for new and used vehicles continues to dwarf supply and that automakers haven’t solved their microchip woes, the following months will be just as unpredictable as the previous month.
Recent stories from the business media suggest that the shortage could last well into 2023, maybe 2024 based on new delivery orders.
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