Kia Sorento units all-time gross sales document, however hybrid orders shut

The Kia Sorento is reaping the advantages of improved provide, setting an all-time month-to-month gross sales document of 1063 items in November 2022 – although it’s a little bit of giveth and taketh.

November’s month-to-month quantity was a 315.2 per cent enchancment on the identical month in 2021, whereas the Sorento’s 12 months so far determine of 6637 gross sales as of November 30 marks 37.2 per cent development.

Nonetheless, it’s not all excellent news. Whereas provide of petrol and diesel fashions has improved to document gross sales ranges, hybrid variations of the Sorento are in such brief provide on account of international demand, they’re now unavailable to order.

“On the present provide operating price, we’ve bought sufficient backorders till 2024,” stated Roland Rivero, normal supervisor for product planning at Kia Australia.

CarExpert understands simply 11 items out of the document 1063 Sorentos delivered in November have been electrified variations, all of which have been Sorento Hybrids (HEV).

Earlier this 12 months, Kia’s native advertising boss Dean Norbiato instructed CarExpert native provide of the Sorento HEV would max out at about 20 items monthly, which is double the Sorento Plug-in Hybrid’s month-to-month provide price of 10 items monthly on the time.

Final month Kia Australia’s chief operations officer Damien Meredith and normal supervisor for product planning Roland Rivero, stated the provision state of affairs for hybrid fashions hasn’t improved since launch, calling it “tokenism at greatest”.

“Our again orders are increase,” stated Mr Rivero, “there’s loads of curiosity, and that’s why we are able to’t provide it on each variant as a result of it’s simply going to create a much bigger drawback. We’re getting a small stream of inventory, tokenism at greatest.”

Mr Meredith added: “We’re getting few, only a few. I feel generally we overlook we’re solely 2.57 per cent of worldwide output – we’ve bought to be grateful for what we get.”

Taking the ever fashionable off-road-ready 4×4 nameplates out of the equation, the Kia Sorento is within the operating for a podium end within the unibody giant SUV class.

As of November 30, the Sorento (6637 items) trails the Toyota Kluger (11,786 items, up 36.2 per cent) and the Subaru Outback (8937 items, down 7.6 per cent).

Kia’s flagship SUV is neck and neck with the Mazda CX-9 (6302 items, up 6.3 per cent) and a bit forward of the Mazda CX-8 (5397 items, down 7.7 per cent), and leads its cousins within the Hyundai Santa Fe (4132 items, down 13.9 per cent) and Palisade (3756 items, up 15.2 per cent).

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