Hyundai has been moving cars at record rates for months on end after beginning a surge of sales believed to be fueled by the economic crisis and the automaker’s positioning to deliver value-minded cars. But as time has pushed on, inventories have been taxed, leaving many dealers begging for more product.



Help is on the way – at least according to Hyundai Motor America CEO John Krafcik, who recently discussed several aspects of the Korean automaker’s business with Ward’s Auto. Krafcik touched on many topics during his interview, including the sales rates and market interest in the newly introduced Sonata Hybrid.



One vehicle that has moved at a particularly impressive rate has been the recently introduced and all-new Elantra. Sales have been so hot, in fact, that the Elantra outsold the hot-selling Sonata by 362 units, ending the month with only a 12-day supply. Most of the auto industry prefers to keep a vehicle supply between 55 and 60 days. Although Hyundai doesn’t have an immediate fix to produce more Elantras, it is focusing on channeling the product it has into the retail market rather than fleet.



Speaking of the Sonata, Hyundai finally got the hybrid variant to market after a five-month delay stemming from the need to add a noisemaker device in order to comply with new government standards to reduce danger to pedestrians. Hyundai had to make engineering changes, modify wiring harnesses and even supplement the owner’s manual – but now the vehicle is shipping and selling at U.S. Hyundai dealers.



Krafcik says that around 30 percent of shoppers on the automaker’s website are choosing the hybrid variant when building a Sonata, but the actual sales mix is closer to 10 percent due to limited supply. “We don’t need that much [30 percent] capacity, but it’s nice to know [that there is demand],” said the CEO.



Another vehicle missing from Hyundai lots has been the Genesis sedan with the R-Spec configuration, which Krafcik says was due to a noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) issue that has since been resolved. The R-Spec Genesis sedan has begun shipping to U.S. dealers now.