May was a good month for most brands and marks. Same can be said for the big three-row crossovers. These all-wheel-drive capable people and stuff movers are still in demand. Ford Explorer continues to dominate the segment with 20,346 units sold and 20.7% growth over the same month of last year. The redesigned 2014 Toyota Highlander is gaining a lot of momentum, but still has a long way to catch the Explorer.
The star of the month was the Hyundai Santa Fe that grew nearly 50% for the month. Hyundai counts the two-row Santa Fe Sport and the three-row Santa Fe GLS sales together, but this result is nonetheless impressive. The mark was able to grab the third sales position for the month.
The Chevy Traverse and the Dodge Durango also had an excellent May. Same cannot be said for the GMC Acadia, Nissan Pathfinder, and the Mazda CX-9. The initial boost of the face-lifted Acadia and all-new Pathfinder has flattened out and went south when compared to the same period of last year. The refreshed and sporty Mazda CX-9 was never able to get traction in the market.
Full-size Crossover – May 2014
| May 2014 # | May ’14 / ’13 % | YTD 2014 # | YTD ’14 / ’13 % | |
| Ford Explorer | 20,346 | 20.7% | 79,343 | -0.5% |
| Toyota Highlander | 12,329 | 8.5% | 60,583 | 19.5% |
| Hyundai SantaFe | 10,638 | 49.5% | 43,075 | 28.6% |
| KIA Sorento | 10,548 | 14.7% | 42,090 | -4.4% |
| Chevrolet Traverse | 10,108 | 23.5% | 41,461 | -3.6% |
| Honda Pilot | 10,054 | -16.0% | 40,850 | -19.6% |
| Nissan Pathfinder | 7,929 | -15.1% | 33,603 | -12.0% |
| GMC Acadia | 6,282 | -28.7% | 33,147 | -11.2% |
| Dodge Durango | 6,071 | 28.0% | 27,892 | 18.0% |
| Mazda CX-9 | 1,602 | -18.8% | 7,812 | -38.3% |
Check out this fun and informative TFLcar video review of the fast 2013 Ford Explorer Sport.
Andre Smirnov is a life-long automotive enthusiast, software engineer, writer, and reporter. He has been writing and reporting at TFLcar since 2011. When not working or spending time with the family – you can find him tinkering in the garage or simply ‘going for a drive’.
