Kia Sales Are Way Up—But Its EVs Continue to Struggle

Kia continues to cook this year, with the Korean automaker recording its best October ever. The automaker sold just over 69,000 cars last month, beating October 2024’s sales by just 94 units. But some models definitely fared better than others.   

The Sportage remains Kia’s best-selling vehicle, selling just over 16,000 crossovers in October, up 17.4 percent. The compact K4 sedan was Kia’s second-best-selling car last month, barely beating the three-row Telluride. The two models actually experienced a decline in sales last month compared to the same period the year prior.   

Telluride sales were down 11.6 percent, while K4 sales tumbled by 22.6 percent, but other models helped offset the loss. Kia Carnival and K5 sales were up 34.5 percent and 31.2 percent, respectively. As of October, Kia has sold 705,105 cars this year. That’s up 8.0 percent—Kia had 50,000 fewer sales this time last year.  

But it’s not all great news for Kia; its EVs continue to take a hit.

Two models that experienced significant sales declines last month were the Kia EV6 and EV9. Sales for the two EVs were already below 2024 levels heading into October, and it doesn’t appear they’ll recover anytime soon.

Here’s how the entire sales chart shakes out for last month:  

Kia sold just 666 EV9s and 508 EV6s last month, down 65.7 percent and 70.7 percent, respectively. In September, Kia sold 3,094 EV9s and 2,116 EV6s, ahead of the federal tax credit for electric vehicles expiring. It’s unlikely those numbers will recover anytime soon, but the rest of Kia’s lineup remains popular with buyers.   

“Despite the numerous challenges facing the automotive industry, Kia is focused on long-term growth, supporting our customers with a diverse model lineup that delivers outstanding value, and we continue to be on pace to deliver our third consecutive annual sales record,” said Eric Watson, Kia America’s vice-president of sales operations.