The Automakers That Killed Sedans Are Really Regretting That Decision Right Now

Nearly every mainstream sedan left on the market posted a sales increase in September, and some of them were massive.

Sedan Sales Party Like It's 2005

It's been more than 40 years since the best-selling car in America was actually a car, and more than a decade since SUVs left sedans behind on the charts, seemingly once and for all. Sedans might not be ready to hit the top of the charts once again, but they're trending upward in a way we haven't seen in many, many years.

Start with the Toyota Camry. For years, it was the number one sales leader – Toyota's best-seller and the highest-selling vehicle on the charts that wasn't a full-sized pickup, until the RAV4 overtook it a decade ago and didn't look back. But that could change.

Toyota reported sales of the Camry up 11.2% from January through September against 2025. In September alone, Toyota moved 25,350, up 3.4% from the same month a year ago. Its own Corolla was up 4.9% last month with 19,365 sold and up 8.4% on the year, though not all Corolla sales are sedans. Right now, the Camry is Toyota's best-selling vehicle with 260,284 sales, holding a slim lead over RAV4. If the sedan's sales stay strong, it might reclaim Toyota's top spot.

Meanwhile at Honda, the Accord has seen sales jump 32.7% this year, now at 145,521. Last month, sales climbed 27.7% to hit 15,507. Civic sales are up 5.4% this year and were up 8.4% last month to just stay ahead of the Accord. At Acura, the Integra saw a slight drop from 1,567 to 1,541, but full-year sales are up 37.3% to 20,100.

At Mazda, both the Mazda3 sedan and hatch saw a massive sales increase, but the sedan posted the bigger jump. Sales were up 167.9% in September to hit 2,794 (the hatch was up 99.1). That puts the 3 sedan up 30.8% for the year and the full Mazda3 line up 42.3% to 32,486.

Hyundai posted 13,902 Elantra sales, up 1%. But the model was up 18% in Q3 year over year, and up 11% for the year so far. Sonata sales were up a whopping 39% for September and 18% for the year. At Kia, both the K4 and K5 performed strongly. The K4 saw sales up around 43% to 12,658 in September. The K5 saw sales climb 14.7% to 6,070. These are some very notable numbers for a segment Ford and General Motors decided to abandon.

Even Dodge is seeing some sales life. The Charger Daytona EV is leaving a crater, down 92% to just 233 sales last quarter, but the gas model is up 1,348%. It hit 3,446 sales in Q3, and while that's not old Charger levels, it's a big improvement. Subaru's last remaining sedan posted a big jump last month, too. Sales of the WRX were up 166% to 1,703. The AWD sports sedan is up 47.8% on the year.

Did Every Sedan Do Better?

The rising tide of sedans means even some luxury sedan sales are climbing. BMW saw 3 Series sales jump 46.4% in the third quarter. At Lexus, IS sales were up 55.8%. For the full year, sales are up 51.8%. But those are more of an outlier than the norm.

BMW's own 5 Series sedan saw sales down 20.6%. The 7 Series flagship dropped 10.1%. Mercedes-Benz and Audi didn't post numbers yet, but Cadillac's CT4 sales fell 44.2%. The CT5 did better, up 4.1%, but it's still down 2.0% for the year at 11,924. And both Caddy sedans are headed out the door at the end of 2026.

At Alfa Romeo, Giulia sales were down 47%. Alfa dealers moved just 151 cars and have sold 670 so far this year.

Some mainstream models also fell. Nissan sold 36,890 Sentra sedans, down 8.3% in the quarter. For the full year, it's down 10.6%. At least Altima sales were flat year over year. The Toyota Prius, once a hot seller, was down 16.9% in September and down 37.5% year over year as the Corolla hybrid largely takes its former role.