Cars and Drivers

This Is the Fastest-Selling Car in America

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: July 14, 2021 11:22 am

Car sales, so badly damaged in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, have not only bounced back but are at record levels. Prices of new and used cars have hit historic peaks, and the increases do not appear close to an end.

One reason for that is supply. A lack of chips for car electronics systems has caused some large companies to shut down production lines. Many popular cars are not even being made. iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer commented on their new June research on car sales: “The microchip shortage continues to impact new and used car sales as production interruptions lower the new car and used car supply and dealers are forced to maintain tight inventory levels.”

iSeeCars looked at the sales of over a million new and used cars (model years 2016 to 2020 for used cars) from June 2021 to determine the cars, sport utility vehicles and light trucks most in demand.

It should come as no surprise that those most in demand and are the least available SUVs, crossovers and pickups. Brauer commented: “Full-size SUVs have been in high demand since the beginning of the year, and while that trend has continued, we’re also seeing newly introduced alternative-fuel vehicles in high demand.”

The standard industry term for determining car model demand at the dealer level is “average days to sell.” In June, across the industry for new cars, that period was 41.7 days. Only one car had a figure below 10 days. At 9.5 days, Toyota’s RAV4 had the lowest numbers. The small SUV has several advantages across much of the market. It is cheap, at an average price of $31,557. It gets strong quality ratings. Car and Driver gives it an 8.5 rating out of 10. Also, Toyota has a decades-old reputation for quality.

Here are the 20 fastest-selling vehicles in America and their days-to-sell figures:

• Toyota RAV4: 9.5
• Kia Telluride: 10.5
• Toyota Tacoma: 10.6
• Cadillac Escalade: 11.1
• Toyota RAV4 Hybrid: 11.1
• Cadillac Escalade ESV: 11.3
• Toyota 4Runner: 11.6
• Toyota RAV4 Prime: 12.0
• Kia Carnival: 12.6
• Lexus IS 350: 13.0
• Hyundai Tucson Hybrid: 13.1
• GMC Yukon: 13.6
• Hyundai Palisade: 13.8
• Subaru Ascent: 14.0
• Toyota Sienna: 14.5
• Toyota Highlander Hybrid: 14.5
• Toyota Tundra: 14.6
• Chevrolet Tahoe: 14.7
• Land Rover Defender: 14.8
• GMC Yukon XL: 15.9

Click here to see which is the slowest-selling car in America.