Hyundai Motor Company is strengthening its presence in Brazil, the largest automobile market in Latin America, by surpassing Japan’s Toyota to record the highest sales among Asian automakers.

According to Hyundai Motor and statistics from the National Federation of Motor Vehicle Distribution (Fenabrave) of Brazil on the 14th, Hyundai sold a total of 182,948 passenger and commercial vehicles in the Brazilian market between January and November this year. Its market share stood at 8.02%, the fourth highest in Brazil.

This ranking is particularly notable as it is higher than that of Japan’s Toyota. During the same period, Toyota sold a total of 158,864 vehicles in Brazil, with a market share of 6.96%, placing it fifth after Hyundai. First place went to Italy’s Fiat (480,377 units, 21.05%), second to Germany’s Volkswagen (388,529 units, 17.02%), and third to U.S. automaker GM (246,401 units, 10.8%).

From September to November, Hyundai sold more than 19,000 vehicles each month. If this trend continues through December, Hyundai’s annual sales in Brazil are expected to exceed 200,000 units. Hyundai also sold 206,029 units last year. It was the first time in five years since 2019 that the company surpassed the 200,000-unit mark, and the volume also exceeded Toyota’s sales (203,793 units). Buoyed by strong sales, Hyundai ranked fourth in overall market share in Brazil last year.


The key to Hyundai’s rapid growth in Brazil is cited as its thorough localization strategy, including local production and a focus on Brazil-tailored models. Hyundai operates a finished vehicle plant in Piracicaba, São Paulo state. The plant has an annual production capacity of up to 210,000 units. The company expanded the facility, which previously could produce only 180,000 units, in 2019 by investing about 125 million reals (KRW 33.8 billion).

Models produced there, such as the HB20 compact sedan and hatchback and the Creta sport utility vehicle (SUV), consistently rank within the top 10 in Brazil’s monthly sales by model. The HB20 is a small vehicle tailored to the South American market, and the Creta is a compact SUV sold in parts of South America and Southeast Asia. While compact cars are particularly popular in Brazil, demand for SUVs has also been steadily increasing in recent years. The most popular model in Brazil is Volkswagen’s Polo, which sells around 10,000 units per month.

There are also projections that Hyundai, with its broad lineup of eco-friendly vehicles such as electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, could benefit from Brazil’s “Green Mobility Innovation” scheme, which is being promoted to grant tax benefits to automakers that invest in carbon neutrality. A Hyundai Motor official stated, “We plan to invest more than USD 1 billion in Brazil’s eco-friendly sectors, including hydrogen, by 2032, and to expand our electric and hybrid vehicle lineups as well.”

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