We may be at the dawn of a green car era but not all motorists are changing their buying habits with an environmental conscience.
According to reports in the Korea Times, carmakers in South Korea sold just 591 hybrids in February, representing just 0.5 per cent of the market – that’s down from 0.6 per cent in January. By contrast, Hyundai SUV models saw a sharp rise in sales – by 70 per cent year on year to 18,704 units. Indeed SUV sales for Kia also almost doubled during the same span.
Sales of hybrids are certainly weaker than expected, particularly as the country introduced large subsidies and tax incentives. However, a Seoul analyst suggests that they will eventually take root but at the moment the high price tags of the models, coupled with the recalls of Toyota’s hybrid cars, have negatively affected consumer sentiment.
Currently, the Korean government offers tax incentives amounting to three million won for buyers of hybrid cars; while Hyundai started providing price cuts worth up to 2.9million won this month.
During February the Hyundai Avante Hybrid sold a mere 266 units – down considerably from the 526 sold during January and the 1,000+ that was achieved from its debut in July through to September.
Elsewhere, sales of the Kia Forte Hybrid fell from 615 last September to 78 in January; sales of the Toyota Prius dropped from 128 in October to 54 in February; and most other hybrid editions failed to sell more than 10 vehicles over the month.
