Vehicles made at Alabama’s three international automakers posted strong sales for October, led by a whopping 125 percent increase in Hyundai’s Sonata.
Mercedes and Honda both reported a 52 percent increase in the R-Class sports tourer and Odyssey minivan respectively, according to published reports.
The Sonata – a sedan made at Hyundai’s sprawling plant near Montgomery – tallied 17,505 sales in October compared to 7,790 during the same month last year. For 2010, Sonata sales through October were up 64 percent over 2009.
October sales for the R-Class led the other two vehicles made at the Mercedes factory in Tuscaloosa County. Nonetheless, the GL-Class luxury SUV posted a healthy 32 percent boost in sales and the M-Class SUV enjoyed a 19 percent increase over October 2009 numbers.
Vehicles from Honda’s car plant near Lincoln had a nice October. In addition to the Odyssey increase, sales for the Pilot SUV climbed 33 percent while the Accord V6 sedan rose 8.8 percent.
Through the first 10 months of 2010, sales for the GL-Class are up over last year’s numbers by 35 percent; M-Class 13 percent; Odyssey 6 percent; Pilot 24 percent; Accord 7 percent.