Kia America’s Rio subcompact automotive is not going to return for the 2024 mannequin yr, the corporate confirmed. It follows the demise of its small Hyundai counterpart, the Accent, discontinued after the 2022 mannequin yr.

Although Kia stated it should stay within the sedan enterprise, People are leaning towards bigger, higher-riding crossovers. Mild vans, a class that features minivans, crossovers, SUVs and pickups, accounted for 79 p.c of all new U.S. car gross sales for the primary six months of 2023 .

That development was mirrored in Rio gross sales. The Rio ended 2022 with gross sales of simply 26,996, a 14-percent decline, in response to the Automotive Information Information & Analysis Heart. By way of July of this yr, Rio gross sales are down 2 p.c.

The automaker’s smallest car is constructed at its manufacturing unit in Monterrey, Mexico, the place Kia seems to be planning to provide two small electrical automobiles after the plant is retooled for electrification.

Additionally assembled in Mexico is the Forte compact sedan. The Forte continues to do effectively within the U.S., logging gross sales of 73,065, a rise of 18 p.c, by the primary seven months of the yr.