The Kia Sportage has had its best month of sales ever in Australia, with 2114 units registered during March 2024.
With sales up 148.4 per cent in comparison with March 2023 and up 53.2 per cent up year-to-date, the Sportage ranked eleventh overall in VFACTS sales standings and was by far Kia’s top performer.
Kia Australia’s product planning boss, Roland Rivero, credited the launch of the brand new Sportage Hybrid not less than partly for the record result – with 349 units of the electrified SUV registered.
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Sportage GT-Line HEV
Questioned about ongoing supply, Mr Rivero told CarExpert there’s definitely “room to maneuver” in comparison with the supply-stricken Sorento Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid, in addition to the upcoming Carnival Hybrid.
“The demand is clearly there [for Sportage Hybrid], and we’re consistently negotiating with the factory to get more units,” Mr Rivero said, opening the door for an increased monthly allocation beyond the originally promised 300/month rate.
It’s likely Kia Australia is in a position to wrangle more Sportage HEVs because of the very fact the Korean factory Australia sources its vehicles from doesn’t have to produce Europe and North America with hybrids and plug-in hybrids as with the Sorento.
Europe and the UK as a substitute source their Sportages from Kia Europe’s Slovakian facility.
Last we heard, supply of the Sorento HEV and PHEV, because of launch in facelifted form imminently, will remain limited to around 20 and 10 units respectively monthly.
CarExpert is expecting Kia Australia to verify pricing and specs for the updated range very soon.
In March the Sportage accounted for nearly 30 per cent of the Korean brand’s overall sales, almost double the amount of its second best seller for the month, the Cerato (1193 units, up 182 per cent).
Despite its record-breaking performance, the Sportage couldn’t manage a podium finish within the top-selling mid-sized SUV segment, ending in fifth behind the Toyota RAV4 (5070), Mitsubishi Outlander (2764), Nissan X-Trail (2161) and Mazda CX-5 (2134).
Read our full VFACTS breakdown for March here.
MORE: Every little thing Kia Sportage
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
