Deciding whether or not to import subcompacts to Canada is similar to determining whether or not hockey should be shown live on television, Uh, yeah…. do it.
Gasoline prices have almost always been a little bit higher in Canada than south of the border. That’s part of it. Vehicle prices have almost always been inordinately high in Canada, as well. Combine these two factors and you see why the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla post huge sales numbers, not the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.
And if everything is bumped down a notch in size, you find success for the smallest cars; the subcompacts. The best-selling car in Canada sits inside a Honda dealership; one rung above the Good 12-winning Honda Fit. Toyota’s venerable Corolla is positioned above the little Yaris, sedan and hatchbacks. The Hyundai Elantra and Kia Spectra have teammates below, as well. That’ll be the Accent and Rio; sedans and hatchbacks available here, too. Mercedes-Benz has (sort of) gotten into this game. Perhaps we shouldn’t say “sort of”. After all, if Mercedes wants to sell some smart fortwos, sales will have to be stolen from the aforementioned subcompacts. Nissan, of course, is in the game with the Versa, a roomy subcompact beneath the Sentra.
Here’s a brief look at subcompact sales in Canada in September. Not all Numbers are meant to be placed in direct comparison with all the others, so pay attention to what you’re reading.
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301 – total sales of the smart fortwo in Canada during the month of September. Small, but up 871 percent from last September
1,608 – total sales of the Bad 8-losing Nissan Versa in September, a 27.3% decline from last September but still more than the Sentra that sold just 1,109 in a month where Sentra sales were up 41.6%
2,866 – total Hyundai Accent sales in the month of August, a 66% increase over the previous August. Heavy advertising of a special $9,995 Accent helped the cause, no doubt.
905 – total Kia Rio sales in September, down from 960 in September of ’07. Year-to-date totals show an increase of 1,792 from January-September
1,536 – total Honda Fit sales in September, up 72% from last September; and some are likely waiting for the soon-to-arrive next-gen Fit
3,975 – total sales of the Toyota Yaris hatchbacks and sedan in September, up 85.4% over last September and more than the Fit; Versa; and fortwo combined
