US - Production of the 2019 Santa Fe has started at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA). The OEM expects to make over 84,000 units of the model before year end as demand for SUVs continues to rise.
"As we launch the new Santa Fe, [we will] take pride in every step of the production process – build each SUV as if it were your own," stated Dong Choi, president and CEO of HMMA. "We must challenge ourselves to achieve the highest quality levels while producing the Santa Fe, Sonata and Elantra."
As well as making the new Santa Fe, HMMA will continue to build the Sonata and Elantra sedans. However, in Hyundai Motor America's latest sales figures, the Elantra fell from 86,955 during the first five months of 2017 to 81,870 over the same period in 2018. Similarly, sales of the Sonata fell from 66,768 to 44,169.
The news comes soon after Hyundai announced that it was investing US$388m to construct a new plant for engine head machining in Alabama as well as updating technology in an existing engine plant.
