The all-new 2011 Hyundai Sonata has been the most considered vehicle on Edmunds.com for five weeks in a row a first ever for Hyundai. And the all-new 2010 Tucson jumped all the way up to number two on the most recent list, in part because of extra marketing on the site. Sonata widened its lead over the Honda Accord and Civic, while the Tucson jumped from fourth to second, giving Hyundai ownership of the top two positions in the weekly analysis. Not surprisingly, the Sonata’s March 2010 sales were on par with both the Accord and Toyota Camry.
Edmunds analyzes consumers’ research behavior and purchase intent on the Edmunds.com website to come up with consideration data. Weekly consideration data looks at how consumers are shopping for more than 400 models on Edmunds.com. Consideration data indicates the effectiveness of a marketing campaign and may suggest future sales.
Our two newest models, the 2011 Sonata and 2010 Tucson, are the heart of our lineup, said Scott Margason, director, Product Planning, Hyundai Motor America. We’re excited to see such positive consumer reception, not just in online consideration, but where it really counts — our showrooms.
The Sonata, Tucson and, on occasion, the Hyundai Genesis, charged into the top 10 of most-shopped vehicles list on Edmunds.com a number of times in the first quarter. In fact, the first quarter of 2010 marked the first time ever that a Hyundai model captured the number one spot on the most shopped list since Edmunds.com began tracking shopping consideration data in 2007.
Hyundai is doing a good job of marketing, which is driving shopping consideration, but also converting consideration to sales, said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst and editor-at-large, who reported on this in great detail for Edmunds’ AutoObserver.com. In March, Hyundai sold 18,935 Sonata models, putting it in the same volume territory as the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord, which are perennially the best-selling cars in America.
Hyundai sold more than 3,000 Tucson models in March for a 129-percent increase over year-ago levels.