The Hyundai Grandeur tightens its grip on the models charts.
New light vehicle sales in South Korea are stable in August at +0.7% year-on-year to 129,832. This includes 106,482 sales for local manufacturers (+1.3%) and 23,350 for foreigners (-2.1%). The year-to-date tally is now up 7.9% to 1,156,741 including 981,549 locals (+9.5%) and 175,177 foreigners (-0.6%). Note foreign carmakers hold 18% of the August market vs. 15.1% year-to-date. In the brands ranking, Hyundai (+17.1%) is back above sister brand Kia (+2%), cementing its YTD lead where it holds a 39,000-unit advantage over Kia. Genesis (-4.5%) stays in third place but underperforms slightly at 7.1% share vs. 7.7% so far this year. Mercedes (+10.9%) overtakes BMW (-13.7%) to rank #4. All other Top 10 members bar Volkswagen (+35.9%) endure steep falls, with Renault Korea (-62%) hit the hardest. Below, Porsche (+64.1%), Lexus (+165.5%) and Volvo (+105.7%) impress.
In the local models ranking, the Hyundai Grandeur (+91.5%) reclaims the top spot it holds year-to-date off the Hyundai Porter (-23.2%) down to #3 this month. The Kia Sorento (+26.5%) is helped to #2 by its facelift and now ranks #4 year-to-date. The Kia Sportage (+34.5%) is also in great shape at #4, distancing the Kia Carnival (+8.9%), Hyundai Avante (+97.8%) and Kia Ray (+55.2%) also beating the market. The Hyundai Casper (+15.2%) and Palisade (+14.8%) round out the Top 10 in solid fashion.
As for foreign models, below the BMW 5 Series (+2.2%), Mercedes places four models in the Top 5: the E Class (-27.5%) stays in 2nd place above the GLC (+66.1%), GLE (+97.3%) and S Class (-52.3%). The Audi A6 (-37.9%) follows ahead of the Lexus ES (+168.9%) and Mercedes C Clas (+3211.8%!). The BMW 3 Series (+26.5%) also beats the market at #10.
Previous month: South Korea July 2023: Kia overtakes Hyundai, places 6 models in Top 8
One year ago: South Korea August 2022: Ssangyong Torres inside Top 10, Hyundai Ioniq 6 lands, registrations up 0.5%
Full August 2023 Top 30 All brands, Top 56 All local models and Top 50 foreign models below.
South Korea August 2023 – brands:
Note: Tesla doesn’t share data with KAIDA and therefore doesn’t appear in this ranking.
| Pos | Brand | Aug-23 | % | /22 | Jul | 2023 | % | /22 | Pos | FY22 |
| 1 | Hyundai | 46,375 | 35.7% | 17.1% | 2 | 421,453 | 36.4% | 19.5% | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Kia | 42,225 | 32.5% | 2.0% | 1 | 382,406 | 33.1% | 7.6% | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Genesis | 9,180 | 7.1% | -4.5% | 3 | 88,874 | 7.7% | 1.8% | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Mercedes | 6,588 | 5.1% | 10.9% | 5 | 47,405 | 4.1% | -6.3% | 5 | 4 |
| 5 | BMW | 6,304 | 4.9% | -13.7% | 4 | 50,341 | 4.4% | 0.0% | 4 | 5 |
| 6 | KG Mobility (ex Ssangyong) | 3,903 | 3.0% | -43.6% | 7 | 46,915 | 4.1% | 13.9% | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | GM Korea | 3,297 | 2.5% | -8.2% | 6 | 26,424 | 2.3% | 4.6% | 7 | 8 |
| 8 | Audi | 1,551 | 1.2% | -32.9% | 9 | 12,691 | 1.1% | 0.4% | 9 | 9 |
| 9 | Renault Korea | 1,502 | 1.2% | -62.0% | 8 | 15,477 | 1.3% | -55.1% | 8 | 7 |
| 10 | Volkswagen | 1,417 | 1.1% | 35.9% | 11 | 5,852 | 0.5% | -31.8% | 14 | 10 |
| 11 | Porsche | 1,111 | 0.9% | 64.1% | 13 | 8,290 | 0.7% | 39.4% | 12 | 14 |
| 12 | Lexus | 1,091 | 0.8% | 165.5% | 12 | 9,129 | 0.8% | 124.7% | 11 | 15 |
| 13 | Volvo | 1,080 | 0.8% | 105.7% | 10 | 10,952 | 0.9% | 28.0% | 10 | 11 |
| 14 | Mini | 1,036 | 0.8% | 9.4% | 14 | 6,264 | 0.5% | -18.3% | 13 | 12 |
| 15 | Toyota | 733 | 0.6% | 2.8% | 15 | 5,333 | 0.5% | 27.3% | 15 | 17 |
| 16 | Jeep | 552 | 0.4% | 11.3% | 17 | 3,103 | 0.3% | -26.2% | 18 | 16 |
| 17 | Chevrolet | 482 | 0.4% | -54.8% | 16 | 3,746 | 0.3% | -20.7% | 17 | 13 |
| 18 | Land Rover | 382 | 0.3% | 23.6% | 18 | 3,778 | 0.3% | 113.1% | 16 | 20 |
| 19 | Polestar | 185 | 0.1% | -66.5% | 21 | 810 | 0.1% | -57.4% | 21 | 21 |
| 20 | Peugeot | 184 | 0.1% | 102.2% | 19 | 1,175 | 0.1% | -0.5% | 20 | 23 |
| 21 | Ford | 181 | 0.1% | -71.8% | 20 | 2,416 | 0.2% | -32.1% | 19 | 18 |
| 22 | Honda | 105 | 0.1% | -67.9% | 27 | 709 | 0.1% | -68.9% | 23 | 19 |
| 23 | Bentley | 84 | 0.1% | -7.7% | 22 | 549 | 0.0% | 3.8% | 25 | 25 |
| 24 | Cadillac | 61 | 0.0% | -27.4% | 23 | 622 | 0.1% | 13.9% | 24 | 24 |
| 25 | Lincoln | 52 | 0.0% | -71.6% | 25 | 783 | 0.1% | -59.4% | 22 | 22 |
| 26 | Maserati | 51 | 0.0% | 24.4% | 28 | 304 | 0.0% | -31.1% | 27 | 26 |
| 27 | Lamborghini | 40 | 0.0% | -11.1% | 26 | 267 | 0.0% | 19.7% | 28 | 27 |
| 28 | GMC | 29 | 0.0% | new | 24 | 343 | 0.0% | new | 26 | – |
| 29 | Rolls-Royce | 29 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 29 | 212 | 0.0% | 23.3% | 29 | 28 |
| 30 | DS | 19 | 0.0% | 375.0% | 30 | 96 | 0.0% | 60.0% | 30 | 30 |
| 31 | Jaguar | 3 | 0.0% | -84.2% | 31 | 37 | 0.0% | -73.4% | 31 | 29 |
| 32 | Citroen | 0 | 0.0% | n/a | – | 0 | 0.0% | -100.0% | 32 | 31 |
| – | Total local manufacturers | 106,482 | 82.0% | 1.3% | – | 981,549 | 84.9% | 9.5% | – | – |
| – | Total foreign manufacturers | 23,350 | 18.0% | -2.1% | – | 175,177 | 15.1% | -0.6% | – | – |
| – | Total market | 129,832 | 100.0% | 0.7% | – | 1,156,741 | 100.0% | 7.9% | – | – |
South Korea August 2023 – models:
| Pos | Model | Aug-23 | /22 | Jul | 2023 | /22 | Pos | FY22 |
| 1 | Hyundai Grandeur | 8,820 | 91.5% | 2 | 80,321 | 78.3% | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Kia Sorento | 7,176 | 26.5% | 5 | 49,412 | 11.3% | 4 | 2 |
| 3 | Hyundai Porter | 5,987 | -23.2% | 1 | 68,008 | 16.0% | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | Kia Sportage | 5,210 | 34.5% | 3 | 47,919 | 40.8% | 5 | 7 |
| 5 | Kia Carnival | 4,937 | 8.9% | 4 | 50,396 | 36.4% | 3 | 5 |
| 6 | Hyundai Avante | 4,758 | 97.8% | 9 | 45,010 | 29.6% | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | Kia Ray | 4,402 | 55.2% | 8 | 33,801 | 16.8% | 9 | 13 |
| 8 | Kia Bongo | 3,892 | -27.8% | 6 | 43,882 | 0.7% | 7 | 4 |
| 9 | Hyundai Casper | 3,804 | 15.2% | 10 | 28,376 | -8.4% | 15 | 10 |
| 10 | Hyundai Palisade | 3,752 | 14.8% | 13 | 30,110 | -9.9% | 13 | 8 |
| 11 | Kia Seltos | 3,512 | -2.7% | 7 | 35,226 | 23.6% | 8 | 14 |
| 12 | Hyundai Sonata | 3,001 | -30.7% | 17 | 21,785 | -32.2% | 20 | 9 |
| 13 | Hyundai Tucson | 2,976 | 51.7% | 16 | 30,393 | 30.4% | 12 | 16 |
| 14 | Hyundai Staria | 2,940 | -0.6% | 15 | 27,004 | 30.6% | 16 | 15 |
| 15 | Genesis GV70 | 2,927 | 46.1% | 12 | 22,345 | 21.9% | 19 | 18 |
| 16 | Genesis G80 | 2,923 | -5.1% | 14 | 33,296 | 3.6% | 10 | 11 |
| 17 | Kia Morning | 2,910 | 35.2% | 22 | 17,843 | -9.4% | 23 | 20 |
| 18 | Hyundai Santa Fe | 2,775 | 9.5% | 21 | 21,411 | 26.1% | 21 | 21 |
| 19 | Hyundai Kona | 2,695 | 262.7% | 19 | 23,951 | 310.0% | 17 | 38 |
| 20 | Kia K5 | 2,613 | 21.3% | 20 | 22,361 | 5.7% | 18 | 17 |
| 21 | Kia K8 | 2,457 | -42.3% | 11 | 31,125 | 6.9% | 11 | 12 |
| 22 | Chevrolet Trax Crossover | 2,129 | new | 18 | 15,246 | new | 25 | – |
| 23 | Kia Niro | 1,809 | -22.1% | 23 | 16,891 | -22.3% | 24 | 19 |
| 24 | Genesis GV80 | 1,692 | 13.3% | 24 | 18,157 | 28.1% | 22 | 26 |
| 25 | KG Mobility Torres | 1,592 | -56.2% | 26 | 28,810 | 348.6% | 14 | 28 |
| 26 | KG Mobility Rexton Sports | 1,310 | -38.2% | 25 | 10,569 | -44.5% | 28 | 24 |
| 27 | Kia K3 | 1,123 | 40.4% | 31 | 8,455 | -41.0% | 30 | 29 |
| 28 | Hyundai Ioniq 5 | 1,061 | -46.9% | 28 | 11,915 | -41.0% | 27 | 23 |
| 29 | Genesis G90 | 1,054 | -56.5% | 30 | 9,124 | -37.8% | 29 | 27 |
| 30 | Kia EV6 | 948 | -43.3% | 27 | 13,273 | -21.4% | 26 | 25 |
| 31 | Hyundai Venue | 904 | 140.4% | 37 | 5,026 | -10.2% | 35 | 37 |
| 32 | Renault Korea QM6 | 685 | -68.8% | 33 | 7,450 | -60.0% | 32 | 22 |
| 33 | Chevrolet Trailblazer | 674 | -29.6% | 35 | 5,635 | -45.3% | 34 | 31 |
| 34 | KG Mobility Tivoli | 639 | 2.4% | 32 | 4,321 | -51.8% | 36 | 34 |
| 35 | Renault Korea XM3 | 629 | -51.7% | 34 | 6,322 | -48.0% | 33 | 30 |
| 36 | Genesis G70 | 457 | 27.7% | 36 | 3,115 | -17.6% | 39 | 40 |
| 37 | Kia EV9 | 408 | new | 29 | 2,993 | new | 40 | – |
| 38 | Hyundai Ioniq 6 | 400 | 4900.0% | 38 | 7,667 | 95737.5% | 31 | 33 |
| 39 | Kia Mohave | 379 | -66.0% | 39 | 3,845 | -53.4% | 37 | 32 |
| 40 | Kia K9 | 347 | -42.4% | 40 | 2,981 | -37.0% | 41 | 39 |
| 41 | Hyundai Nexo | 293 | -70.1% | 41 | 3,591 | -44.2% | 38 | 36 |
| 42 | KG Mobility Rexton | 242 | -25.8% | 44 | 2,134 | -12.5% | 43 | 44 |
| 43 | Chevrolet Bolt EUV | 209 | 5.0% | 42 | 1,066 | 147.9% | 48 | 48 |
| 44 | Renault Korea SM6 | 188 | -56.6% | 45 | 1,637 | -38.6% | 44 | 43 |
| 45 | Genesis GV60 | 127 | -51.2% | 43 | 2,837 | -32.4% | 42 | 41 |
| 46 | Chevrolet Colorado | 120 | -38.1% | 46 | 1,102 | -46.8% | 46 | 45 |
| 47 | KG Mobility Korando | 120 | -44.2% | 48 | 1,081 | -74.4% | 47 | 42 |
| 48 | Chevrolet Traverse | 63 | -81.0% | 47 | 777 | -31.2% | 49 | 47 |
| 49 | GMC Sierra | 38 | new | 49 | 339 | new | 52 | – |
| 50 | Chevrolet Bolt | 29 | -76.6% | 50 | 193 | 22.2% | 53 | 53 |
| 51 | Chevrolet Equinox | 22 | -89.7% | 51 | 391 | -40.5% | 51 | 51 |
| 52 | Chevrolet Tahoe | 13 | -55.2% | 52 | 163 | -42.6% | 54 | 55 |
| 53 | Chevrolet Spark | 0 | -100.0% | – | 1,419 | -82.1% | 45 | 35 |
| 54 | Kia Stinger | 0 | -100.0% | – | 483 | -66.5% | 50 | 46 |
| 55 | Chevrolet Malibu | 0 | -100.0% | – | 78 | -93.1% | 55 | 49 |
| 56 | Renault Korea Master | 0 | -100.0% | 53 | 68 | -85.7% | 56 | 52 |
South Korea August 2023 – foreign models:
| Pos | Model | Aug-23 | /22 | Jul | 2023 | /22 | Pos | FY22 |
| 1 | BMW 5 Series | 1,707 | 2.2% | 1 | 15,599 | 24.6% | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | Mercedes E Class | 1,382 | -27.5% | 2 | 12,029 | -36.7% | 2 | 1 |
| 3 | Mercedes GLC | 1,163 | 66.1% | 4 | 4,670 | 48.2% | 6 | 13 |
| 4 | Mercedes GLE | 789 | 97.3% | 13 | 4,216 | 5.9% | 7 | 8 |
| 5 | Mercedes S Class | 751 | -52.3% | 3 | 8,016 | -20.0% | 3 | 3 |
| 6 | Audi A6 | 643 | -37.9% | 7 | 5,770 | 19.1% | 4 | 4 |
| 7 | Lexus ES | 589 | 168.9% | 8 | 5,622 | 107.8% | 5 | 15 |
| 8 | Mercedes C Class | 563 | 3211.8% | 22 | 3,422 | 58.6% | 13 | 21 |
| 9 | VW Tiguan | 506 | -10.4% | 5 | 2,953 | 17.7% | 16 | 11 |
| 10 | BMW 3 Series | 497 | 26.5% | 9 | 3,882 | -23.0% | 10 | 9 |
| 11 | BMW 6 Series | 445 | -25.8% | 11 | 4,007 | 50.2% | 8 | 19 |
| 12 | Tesla Model Y | 431 | -79.8% | n/a | 2,524 | -39.4% | 17 | 7 |
| 13 | BMW 7 Series | 423 | -2.1% | 16 | 1,986 | -12.7% | 24 | 26 |
| 14 | BMW X7 | 384 | -9.9% | 10 | 2,395 | -29.9% | 19 | 18 |
| 15 | BMW iX3 | 374 | 1977.8% | 20 | 1,580 | 91.5% | 31 | 39 |
| 16 | BMW X5 | 372 | -35.0% | 17 | 3,331 | -27.7% | 14 | 5 |
| 17 | BMW X4 | 365 | -24.4% | 14 | 3,955 | 38.3% | 9 | 14 |
| 18 | Mercedes EQE | 339 | 16850.0% | 12 | 2,034 | n/a | 23 | n/a |
| 19 | BMW X3 | 316 | -31.0% | 15 | 3,602 | -14.1% | 12 | 10 |
| 20 | Mini Countryman | 289 | 207.4% | 25 | 1,740 | 9.6% | 29 | 27 |
| 21 | Mini Cooper Hatch | 285 | -34.2% | 24 | 2,384 | -22.8% | 20 | 17 |
| 22 | Toyota RAV4 | 283 | -1.7% | 29 | 1,935 | 43.9% | 25 | 31 |
| 23 | Porsche Panamera | 279 | 40.2% | 34 | 1,407 | 50.0% | 34 | n/a |
| 24 | VW ID.4 | 277 | 4516.7% | n/a | 389 | 6383.3% | 68 | n/a |
| 25 | Mercedes CLS | 274 | 54.8% | 31 | 1,769 | -23.0% | 28 | 22 |
| 26 | Volvo S90 | 268 | 1310.5% | 18 | 2,281 | 5.2% | 21 | 12 |
| 27 | Porsche Cayenne | 258 | -30.5% | 19 | 3,652 | 67.5% | 11 | 20 |
| 28 | Volvo XC60 | 258 | 47.4% | 6 | 3,163 | 59.1% | 15 | 32 |
| 29 | BMW X6 | 258 | -38.7% | 32 | 2,435 | -23.1% | 18 | 16 |
| 30 | Lexus NX | 258 | 174.5% | 27 | 2,121 | 296.4% | 22 | n/a |
| 31 | Mercedes GLB | 246 | 103.3% | 40 | 1,459 | -26.4% | 33 | 24 |
| 32 | Jeep Renegade | 242 | 317.2% | 30 | 890 | -12.3% | 51 | n/a |
| 33 | BMW i4 | 230 | -56.5% | 42 | 1,693 | 32.4% | 30 | 35 |
| 34 | Mini Clubman | 225 | -23.5% | 39 | 1,213 | -30.2% | 36 | 34 |
| 35 | Mercedes G Class | 217 | 19.9% | 21 | 1,563 | 156.7% | 32 | 50 |
| 36 | Volvo XC90 | 214 | 47.6% | 23 | 1,799 | 42.4% | 27 | 36 |
| 37 | VW Jetta | 214 | 21300.0% | n/a | 563 | -65.2% | 62 | 30 |
| 38 | Chevrolet Bolt EUV | 209 | 5.0% | 26 | 1,066 | 147.9% | 40 | 44 |
| 39 | Mini Electric | 189 | 142.3% | n/a | 545 | -37.1% | 64 | n/a |
| 40 | Polestar 2 | 185 | -66.5% | 50 | 810 | -57.4% | 55 | 29 |
| 41 | Mercedes AMG GT | 183 | 134.6% | n/a | 807 | -8.6% | 56 | n/a |
| 42 | Porsche Taycan | 179 | n/a | 37 | 1,034 | 10.9% | 41 | n/a |
| 43 | Porsche 911 | 174 | 397.1% | n/a | 964 | 35.2% | 46 | n/a |
| 44 | VW Arteon | 172 | -47.9% | 35 | 676 | -63.9% | 59 | 33 |
| 45 | Jeep Wrangler | 168 | -12.5% | 45 | 903 | -39.5% | 50 | 46 |
| 46 | Range Rover | 166 | 32.8% | 36 | 1,875 | 674.8% | 26 | n/a |
| 47 | Audi Q4 e-Tron | 166 | new | n/a | 182 | new | 79 | 43 |
| 48 | Porsche Macan | 164 | 144.8% | 43 | 814 | 27.8% | 54 | n/a |
| 49 | Lexus RX | 164 | 127.8% | 28 | 756 | 300.0% | 58 | n/a |
| 50 | Toyota Camry | 163 | 64.6% | 47 | 1,366 | 5.7% | 35 | n/a |
Source: KAIDA, Manufacturers
