Kia (and their dealerships) had some lean years when they had to over-rely on car sales (heavy discounts and fleet sales) due to a limited CUV lineup.
The average profitability for Kia dealerships was below $1 million, but should be markedly improved by next year with a heavily revised lineup (a good part of lower profitability is tied to lower used car/CPO sales - where Kia has lagged behind, but such sales have been growing).
The new Sorento being available with a hybrid should steal some sales away from the Highlander hybrid (the room at the 3rd row is not that much more in the Highlander).
But in addition to increasing sales, think the new Sedona will have a higher take rate for the top trim than the Sorento, bringing in buyers looking for a more premium minivan (much like how the SX-P has done for the mainstream 3-row CUV segment).
Don't think the K5 will overtake the Sonata in ATP (highest in the segment) due to not offering a hybrid (but does offer AWD, which the Sonata currently does not), but matching the Sonata in ATP means more profit to both Kia and t the dealerships.
At a lower pricepoint, the Seltos has been a success for Kia (should bring over the new Sonet, which, despite its smaller size, looks better than the Seltos), and there's a new Sportage on the way.
There are also a number of dedicated BEV models on the way, but it remains to be seen if mainstream BEVs can be sold for a profit (a couple of these BEVS will be more performance oriented, so going for a more upscale clientele).
Honda is taking a page from the Telluride and is making the next Pilot more rugged, but based on the images of the updated and more rugged Ridgeline, not impressed.
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