The good-old American sedan has been somewhat of a dying breed over the last couple of decades, with brands across the land switching their attention towards more successful vehicle designs, and leaving the sedan well behind. The drop in interest for the sedan has been so steep that there have even been thoughts regarding whether the class could go extinct in the next decade or two, considering how few models remained popular enough to justify keeping in production. Well, in 2026, things look not to be quite so simple.
SUVs Have Driven Sedans To The Edge Of Extinction
rav4 hybridToyota
Sedans were once the dominant force in American mobility, with the vehicle class sharing a huge 80% of the US vehicle market share along with their wagon siblings during the 1970s. Starting from the 1980s though, correlating with the improvement in suspension and other vehicle technology that made larger vehicles easier to drive and more efficient than ever, this percentage has dropped off considerably. Spin the clock forward to 2025, and this market share had been reduced to less than 25%, as pickup trucks and the various forms of SUVs became the dominant players, with these holding around 75% of the total market share.
Families have moved to SUVs in droves, mostly due to the enhanced practicality and trendiness they provide over and above traditional sedan and wagon offerings. Slowly but surely over the last decades, huge manufacturers like Ford and General Motors discontinued their long-standing sedan models in favor of more popular SUVs. The venerable Fusion and Taurus nameplates were retired in 2019 after their sales were slashed dramatically, with Ford shifting around a quarter of the former in 2015 compared to 2005, while Chevrolet axed the Malibu in 2024.
This was just the tip of the iceberg, as over the past couple of years plenty of other traditionally popular sedan models have been lost. Nissan recently killed off its Altima and Maxima vehicles, Subaru waved goodbye to the Legacy, while other mid-size models like the Mazda 6 and Volkswagen Passat were also ditched. Luckily for sedan lovers though, things are looking up for the vehicle class in 2026.
Toyota Is Experiencing Renewed Success With Its Remaining Sedans
2026 Toyota Camry AWDToyota
When it comes to keeping the sedan body style alive, no manufacturer has been as successful as Toyota. Sedans have been an integral part of the Japanese manufacturer’s US attack since its early days, with its current models including the full-size Crown, mid-size Camry, and the compact Corolla. While most sedans have been hit with reduced sales over the last several years, the Camry seems to consistently go from strength to strength, as it remained the only sedan to retain a place within the top 10 best-selling models across the USA in 2025.
With over 316,000 examples sold during that year, Toyota managed to sell over double the number of cars as its closest mid-sized rival, the Honda Accord. The gap widened from the year before, as while Toyota waved off 2% more Camrys in 2025 than in 2024, Honda sold a considerable 7.7% fewer Accords. Despite this, interest in the Camry has increased by a surprisingly steep margin in 2026 compared to last year, with sales up by an impressive 12.1% as of August 2026 compared to the same time last year.
Toyota Sedan Sales Figures (Jan-Aug)
Model
2025
2026
Camry
209,905
235,334 (+12.1%)
Corolla
161,626
175,776 (+8.8%)
The same can be said about the Corolla sedan, which has seen sales increase by just shy of 9% year-on-year thus far. Hell, even Toyota’s posher version of the Camry, the Lexus IS, has seen a drastic uptake in interest. A huge 51.3% more ISs have been sold in 2026 compared to last year, clearly illustrating an uptick in the sales performance of Toyota’s sedans.
Hyundai Is Also Profiting From The Recent Sedan Boom
2025 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid side view.Jared Rosenholtz / CarBuzz / Valnet
While you could put down these numbers as simply more people having to migrate towards Toyota due to other sedans being discontinued, or because it’s the obvious choice, the fact that other brands are seeing increases suggests that the sedan as a whole is becoming trendier. Hyundai is another brand to see its sedan offerings enjoy a sales resurgence so far in 2026, with its Elantra compact machine leading the charge.
As of August 2026, the Korean firm has sold 114,701 examples of the Elantra, which is 12.7% better off than at the same time in 2025. It even managed to shift 2,500 more cars just in August 2026 than it had during the same month a year ago, which translates to an increase of 16%. Its mid-size Sonata offering has fared even better so far this year in terms of increasing sales, with Hyundai selling just shy of 7,000 more specimens so far in 2026.
Hyundai Sedan Sales Figures (Jan-Aug)
Model
2025
2026
Elantra
102,404
114,701 (+12.0%)
Sonata
42,192
49,174 (+16.5%)
That’s a 16.5% increase year-on-year, while a massive 44% more Sonatas managed to find new homes in August alone compared to the same period in 2025. Its sporty sister brand, Kia, also saw increases for its own K5 offering, with 11.2% more walking off dealer lots compared to last year, for example.
Mazda’s Compact Sedan Is Popular At The Moment
2025 Mazda 3 Sedan exterior in whiteMazda
And then we come to Mazda, which further illustrates that this trend isn’t an exception, but is becoming the rule. While it joined many other brands in ditching its larger sedan models, with the 6 being lost back in 2021, it has retained its more budget-focused 3 Sedan within its range. Based on its 2026 sales performance thus far, we bet Mazda is very glad it let at least one of its sedans live.
As of August, Mazda has seen 21.3% more 3 sedans drive off in the hands of their new owners, which translates to an increase of around 3,000 units. When covering the month of August in isolation, Mazda just recorded an incredible increase of 113.1% when compared to the same short period in 2025.
Mazda Sedan Sales Figures (Jan-Aug)
Model
2025
2026
3 Sedan
15,115
18,341 (+21.3%)
This trend is continuing elsewhere, too. Honda has seen 33.1% more of its Accords sell versus the same point last year, while an extra 5% of Civics have found new homes. Volkswagen has also been able to jump on the same bandwagon courtesy of its venerable Jetta, which has seen a solid jump of 9.7% across the first eight months of 2026 when compared to the same period in 2025. It seems the sedan isn’t quite dead yet.
Rising Costs Have Allowed The Budget Sedan To Flourish
Exterior view of the Volkswagen JettaVolkswagen
It must be noted that all these increases have been seen on cheaper sedan models, with the exception being the near-$50,000 Lexus IS. The rest are all on the market for less than $30k, which suggests that many buyers are flocking back towards the trusty sedan due to them being bargain options. With SUVs being larger and more practical than their sedan counterparts, manufacturers tend to demand a premium to secure one.
Take the Jetta as an example, as, while it starts at just $23,995, VW’s smallest SUV, the Taos, will need you to hand over $26,500. It’s a similar story when you look at Toyota’s range, since the SUV equivalents of the Corolla and Camry, namely the Corolla Cross and RAV4, both cost an extra couple of grand. Due to the sedans being lighter and boasting a more slippery body design, they’re also more fuel-efficient, meaning even more money can be saved.
At a time when gas prices are higher than ever, not to mention living costs going in the same northward direction, new car buyers are looking to save as much cash as possible. While the extra practicality of an SUV is great when you’ve got the leftover cash to spend, sedans are proving to be much easier on the ever-tighter wallets, and are thus standing out as great value versus SUVs at the moment. This recent trend could easily reverse should the US’s financial situation start to recover, but perhaps it won’t.
Maybe many buyers start to fall back in love with the sleeker and better-driving sedan, and realize that perhaps they don’t need the extra practicality that an SUV offers. For now, though, sedan enthusiasts can take great pleasure in seeing the classic body style enjoy somewhat of a resurgence in 2026.
Sources: Hyundai, Mazda, Toyota
