Smaller SUVs Increasingly Popular in South Korea

SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — Compact sports utility vehicles are rising as the new standard in the South Korean market as they are bulking up to the size of midsize SUVs.

South Korean automakers’ sales performance in the third quarter (July to September) of this year included 49,495 units of compact SUVs sold, topping all other types of vehicles. Sales of compact SUVs almost doubled since the third quarter last year (25,356 units).

The rising popularity of compact SUVs is largely attributed to their bulked-up size, with many almost as large as midsize SUVs.

Kia Corp.’s all-new Sportage SUV is 4,660 millimeters long, which is 175 millimeters longer than the previous model (4,485 mm). The wheelbase, which is critical to shaping the car’s indoor space, is 2,755 millimeters long, 85 millimeters longer than the previous model.

Its size is more or less equivalent to Hyundai Motor Co.’s Santa Fe SUV, which is 4,785 millimeters in length with a wheelbase that stretches 2,765 millimeters.

The wheelbases of Hyundai’s IONIQ 5 all-electric model and Kia’s all-electric EV6 sedan that don’t need a separate space for an engine, are 3,000 millimeters and 2,900 millimeters long respectively, surpassing the size of a medium-sized SUV.

They are more or less equivalent to the wheelbase of Hyundai’s Palisade SUV (2,900 millimeters).

Image Credit: Kia / Yonhap / photonews@koreabizwire.com