Top 10 best-selling itty-bitty SUVs in Canada in 2023 so far | Driving By Numbers

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With an average base price of just under $29,000, the entry-level subcompact of 2023 is most definitely not your grandfather’s economy car. Wait a second. The entry-level subcompact of 2023 isn’t even a car. It’s a crossover.

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Subcompact cars, you’ll recall, are all but extinct in the Canadian automotive marketplace. The Chevrolet Sonic and Spark, Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, Mazda 2, and Toyota Yaris were part of a subcompact-car category that accounted for one out of every 20 new vehicle sales in Canada just a decade ago. They’re all dead and gone. Subcompact cars now account for just one out of every 200 new vehicles sold in Canada.

Subcompact crossovers, on the other hand, paint an entirely different picture. Generating 11 per cent of all auto sales, and with year-over-year sales improvement of continuing models landing at 14 pe rcent in the first quarter of 2023, subcompact crossovers are among the hottest sectors in the industry.

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Perhaps the Nissan Juke, Mitsubishi RVR, and Mini Countryman appeared to be odd candidates on which to build a foundation for the segment as the industry exited a global meltdown in 2011. The Juke was, well, odd. The RVR was a niche player from a middling brand. The Countryman was, and is, expensive. Yet little more than a decade later, subcompact crossovers – having run subcompact cars out of the country – now rank among the most popular vehicles on the market.

No, we’re serious. Excluding pickup trucks, the sixth- and seventh-best-selling vehicles in the country in 2023’s first quarter hailed from this category. That puts a pair of subcompact utilities well ahead of the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic. In fact, five of Canada’s 25 best-selling vehicles overall are subcompact crossovers.

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The next question, therefore, is rather obvious. If subcompact crossovers now rank among the most popular vehicles in Canada, which vehicles lead the subcompact crossover category?

10. Buick Encore GX: 1,896, up 165 per cent

After a disastrous, supply-limited start to 2022, 2023’s numbers appear especially bright for the Buick Encore GX. Not to be confused with the now-discontinued Encore – nor the front-wheel-drive-only Envista that will be positioned as Buick’s entry point – the Encore GX is a stablemate of the Chevrolet Trailblazer. Not coincidentally, the duo sells in virtually identical numbers, resulting in combined GM Canada market share of 10 per cent in the subcompact SUV-crossover category.

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9. Chevrolet Trailblazer: 1,951, up 95 per cent

Doubling last year’s abysmal total isn’t really the most remarkable achievement. (Supply was so limited across much of GM’s network at the start of 2022, that early 2023 was bound to appear impressive.) More to the point, the Trailblazer’s run-of-the-mill 1,951-unit first-quarter tally speaks to Detroit’s disappointment in the segment. The Ford Ecosport (for which there are no first-quarter figures available, as per Ford’s new policy) never ranks high on this list, and there are no appearances from the Stellantis family, either. The top eight positions in the segment belong to Asian brands, with one German exception.

8. Honda HR-V: 2,418, down 0.2 per cent

Now in its second-generation phase after a 2022 that was Honda’s so-called Year Of The SUV, the HR-V is a long way from the top of the pile. It’s a notable gap, given the recency with which the HR-V actually led the way. The HR-V was No. 1 in 2017 with 14,149 sales.

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7. Hyundai Venue: 2,688, up 6 per cent

The bite-size Venue is one of two vehicles in the top 10 that aren’t even available with all-wheel-drive. That was enough to preclude vehicles from contention on best-seller charts in the not-so-distant past, but it’s clearly not a factor that stops the Venue from actually being successful. A low price doesn’t hurt, either. The Venue starts just above $23,000, well below the typical $29,000 freight-/PDI-included entry MSRP of the segment.

6. Subaru Crosstrek: 2,871, down 29 per cent

Frequently a contender for top spot, the Subaru Crosstrek’s troubled start to 2023 is not entirely out of line with Subaru’s short-term trajectory. The Impreza posted a 24-per-cent drop in Q1 sales, for example, while the Legacy and BRZ fell 46 and 64 per cent, respectively. Forester volume, meanwhile, slid 12 per cent. A year ago, the Crosstrek ranked third in the segment.

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5. Volkswagen Taos: 3,081, up 33 per cent

In a list full of relatively fresh nameplates, the Volkswagen Taos is the most recent subcompact crossover to come out of the oven. Like the Atlas and second-gen Tiguan, it’s a hit, a far cry from the unpopular SUV efforts of Volkswagen’s past. While only 213 sales off podium pace in this segment, the Taos is currently the most popular Volkswagen in Canada.

4. Nissan Kicks: 3,182, down 20 per cent

As the larger Qashqai – formerly a segment leader – goes through a transitional phase that sees its U.S. availability grind to a halt, the Kicks is relied upon to shoulder the small crossover load for Nissan in Canada. It’s not doing so, at least not in Q1. Fortunately for Nissan, Rogue availability this year is much better than it was a year ago. That model jumped 27 per cent to 5,918 units. The Kicks remains Nissan’s No. 2 model overall. Together with the Qashqai, Nissan presently owns 12 per cent of the segment’s share, down from 23 per cent in the first quarter of 2022.

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3. Mazda CX-30: 3,294, up 173 per cent

Bolstering its credentials as a vehicle that deserves widespread consideration, the Mazda CX-30 is finally living up to its true potential. Launched just prior to the pandemic, the CX-30 didn’t truly get a fair shot at an effective launch. Suddenly, however, the CX-30 appears ready to take over as Mazda’s top seller, with no CX-3 in the lineup garnering entry-level sales. Mazda’s CX-5 outsold the CX-30 by only 11 units between January and March.

2. Hyundai Kona: 5,142, down 4 per cent

Firmly established as top dog among subcompact utilities thanks to outright sales leadership in four consecutive years, the Hyundai Kona is now moving into second-gen form with a slight lapse in total units moved. The Kona’s modest 4-per-cent year-over-year decline stands out only because of the dramatic upward move by its platform partner from Kia. At this time a year ago, 13 per cent of subcompact crossovers sold were Konas, on par with 2023.

1. Kia Seltos: 5,256, up 101 per cent

Its narrow 114-unit margin of victory in Q1 may not stand by year’s end, but the Kia Seltos’ move to the top of the leaderboard is still a notable achievement. After a much later arrival on the market than the Kona with which it shares underpinnings (the Seltos landed inconveniently in March 2020; the Hyundai alternative in February 2018) Kia’s eventual top seller had a lot of catching up to do. The catching up appears complete. Seltos volume in the first quarter doubled last year’s effort.