Hybrid vehicles helped reshape the U.S. new-vehicle market in the third quarter, lifting Toyota, Honda and Hyundai Motor Group while Detroit’s three automakers lost ground. Buyers continued to show strong interest in vehicles that offer better fuel economy without requiring a charging stop, while electric-vehicle sales fell sharply at several major manufacturers.
Overall, third-quarter sales slipped 0.4 percent, leaving U.S. sales down 1.2 percent through the first nine months of 2026. September provided a stronger finish, with preliminary estimates showing sales increased 5.5 percent to approximately 1.3 million vehicles. Labor Day business, an end-of-quarter push and an extra selling day helped the monthly results. September retail sales increased an estimated 5 percent, while fleet deliveries rose 8.1 percent.
September’s seasonally adjusted annual selling rate, which expresses the month’s sales pace as an annual figure, reached 16.1 million vehicles. That was below August’s 16.8 million and September 2025’s 16.6 million, but it marked the seventh consecutive month above 16 million.
The broader picture was a market holding up better than expected, although the gains were uneven. Hybrids, selected crossovers and fleet business provided strength, while high prices, borrowing costs and weaker EV demand continued to weigh on sales.
Toyota And Honda Ride Hybrid Momentum
Toyota Motor’s September sales rose 8.4 percent, with the Toyota division gaining 7.9 percent and Lexus increasing 11 percent. Electrified vehicles, most of them hybrids, posted a 38 percent increase and accounted for 58 percent of the company’s September deliveries.
Honda also finished the quarter with a strong month. American Honda sold 121,796 vehicles in September, up 16 percent. Honda-brand deliveries increased 17 percent, while Acura gained 4.4 percent. Those results marked Honda’s sixth consecutive monthly increase and Acura’s fifth.
Honda’s gains extended across cars and light trucks, which rose 15 percent and 16 percent, respectively. Accord Hybrid sales increased 22 percent, and CR-V Hybrid deliveries climbed 21 percent. The CR-V, Odyssey, Passport and Ridgeline each recorded gains of at least 15 percent.
Hyundai And Kia Set September Records
Hyundai and Kia both established September sales records, with hybrids playing a substantial role. Hyundai sold 77,439 vehicles, up 9.1 percent, while Kia delivered 77,009, an 18 percent increase.
Hyundai’s hybrid sales rose 39 percent to 21,578 vehicles, representing approximately 28 percent of its monthly sales. Kia’s hybrid deliveries surged 152 percent, helping support a 19 percent increase in retail sales. EV demand fell sharply at both brands compared with September 2025, when buyers rushed to purchase before federal tax credits expired.
Hyundai’s Tucson, Santa Fe, Palisade, Sonata and Kona each posted double-digit gains of at least 12 percent. Palisade sales jumped 52 percent, while Tucson deliveries increased 32 percent.
Kia’s five biggest sellers — Sportage, Telluride, K4, Sorento and Carnival — also recorded double-digit September increases. Kia finished the third quarter with a record 236,659 U.S. sales, up 7.8 percent. Both Hyundai and Kia remained on track for annual U.S. sales records.
Detroit’s Results Were Mixed
General Motors remained the U.S. sales leader, but its third-quarter deliveries fell 5.4 percent. Chevrolet declined 4.4 percent, GMC dropped 4.7 percent and Cadillac fell 30 percent. Buick provided a bright spot, increasing 7.9 percent and ending four consecutive quarterly declines.
GM’s EV results were particularly weak. Equinox EV sales fell 92 percent, Blazer EV dropped 84 percent, Cadillac Lyriq declined 51 percent, Silverado EV fell 58 percent and GMC Hummer EV deliveries decreased 73 percent. Every GM EV sold in the United States except the Chevrolet Bolt and Cadillac Optiq recorded a double-digit decline. The revived Bolt generated 3,866 sales during the quarter and 8,090 through September.
Ford Motor recorded its third consecutive quarterly sales decline, affected by weaker EV deliveries and the discontinued Ford Escape and Lincoln Corsair. Ford-brand sales dropped 6 percent, while Lincoln fell 18 percent.
F-Series deliveries slipped 1.9 percent, although Ford’s overall pickup sales increased 2.1 percent because of stronger Maverick and Ranger results. F-150 production was fully restored by the end of September following disruptions caused by fires at a major aluminum supplier last year.
Stellantis’ third-quarter sales declined just 0.3 percent, but results varied considerably by brand. Jeep fell 29 percent, while Ram increased 20 percent, Chrysler gained 6.4 percent and Dodge rose 1.6 percent.
Jeep Wagoneer S sales dropped 96 percent. The new Cherokee, offered exclusively with a hybrid powertrain, recorded 10,344 deliveries during the quarter. Among retail sales, Ram 1500 deliveries increased 42 percent, Dodge Durango rose 18 percent, Jeep Grand Wagoneer gained 14 percent and Chrysler Pacifica increased 7 percent.
Other Brands Find Pockets Of Strength
Nissan Motor’s third-quarter sales increased 1.4 percent. Nissan-brand volume edged up 0.2 percent, while Infiniti climbed 20 percent, ending a string of 10 quarterly declines. Nissan’s retail sales increased 6.8 percent.
Subaru recorded its fifth consecutive monthly sales increase in September. Forester deliveries jumped 46 percent, Crosstrek gained 6.8 percent and Outback increased 1.9 percent. Solterra EV sales fell 63 percent.
Mazda rebounded from two monthly declines with a September record of 34,519 vehicles, up 32 percent. Its car sales increased 117 percent and crossover deliveries rose 25 percent, although year-to-date sales remained down 2.9 percent.
BMW’s third-quarter sales increased 3.4 percent. Genesis set a quarterly record of 22,645 vehicles, up 5.5 percent, following an 18 percent September increase to 8,063 sales.
Affordability Still Shapes The Market
The average new light vehicle transaction price reached $50,089 in August, moving above $50,000 for the first time since December 2025. Those prices are pushing some buyers toward smaller or less expensive vehicles, used cars, or simply keeping their current vehicles longer.
Fleet business has helped support the overall market. Deliveries to commercial, government and rental customers increased 7 percent through the year’s reporting period, while retail sales to consumers fell 5 percent. Fleet purchases accounted for nearly one in five sales.
Incentives also increased. September’s average incentive was projected at $3,574 per vehicle, up 7.3 percent from a year earlier. Incentives on gasoline and hybrid vehicles were estimated at $3,319, up 32 percent, while EV incentives fell 22 percent to $8,829.
Inventory remained relatively stable at approximately 2.7 million new vehicles in September, down 1 percent from a year earlier, with an overall 76-day supply. Toyota, Lexus and Honda continued to have the leanest inventories.
Full-year U.S. sales forecasts have been raised to approximately 16.1 million vehicles following stronger-than-expected demand in recent months. That would still trail 2025’s 16.4 million. Heading into the final quarter, the market’s direction is clear: Hybrids are gaining momentum, affordability remains a major obstacle, and sales strength depends heavily on which vehicles an automaker has in its showrooms.
Here are the winners and losers for this year through 3 Quarters, in volume order, and here the year-to-date sales numbers compare to the same time a year ago:
MANUFACTURER |
YTD Q3 2026 |
vs 2025 |
1. Toyota |
1,613,845 |
1% |
2. Ford |
1,438,570 |
8% |
3. Chevrolet |
1,297,869 |
5% |
4. Honda |
1,045,593 |
5% |
5. Hyundai |
697,464 |
3% |
6. Nissan |
675,396 |
0.3 |
7. Kia |
667,386 |
5% |
8. Subaru |
475,878 |
1% |
9. GMC |
472,259 |
2% |
10. Jeep |
413,765 |
8% |
11. Ram |
369,379 |
20% |
12. Mazda |
310,268 |
3% |
13. BMW |
287,154 |
4 % |
14. Lexus |
262,768 |
3% |
15. Mercedes-Benz |
248,800 |
1% |
16. Buick |
135,811 |
13% |
17. Cadillac |
132,620 |
25% |
18. Acura |
103,667 |
4% |
19. Chrysler |
101,367 |
12% |
20. Volvo |
80,645 |
11% |
21. Dodge |
71,038 |
3% |
22. Lincoln |
69,487 |
12% |
23. Mitsubishi |
68,554 |
7% |
24. Land Rover |
63,200 |
27% |
25. Genesis |
61,377 |
5% |
26. Infiniti |
40,887 |
6% |
27. Mini |
20,248 |
7% |
28. Jaguar |
8,300 |
27% |
29. Alfa Romeo |
2,316 |
52% |
30. Maserati |
2,180 |
39% |
31. Rolls-Royce |
1,285 |
1% |
32. McLaren |
765 |
11% |
33. Fiat |
285 |
77% |
Photo Credit: Andy Dean Photography/Shutterstock.com