Top 10 Q3 auto sales winners and losers. Our picks

Posted by Talbot Payne on October 28, 2026

At 4,200 pounds, the 2026 Tesla Model Y is one of the most nimble SUVs in segment. It remains the U.S. EV sales king.

At 4,200 pounds, the 2026 Tesla Model Y is one of the most nimble SUVs in segment. It remains the U.S. EV sales king.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

At the end of the third quarter, the 2026 Auto Sales Super Bowl is full of story lines.

Entering the fourth, sales are off 2% from a year ago but Cox Automotive sees strength and predicts 2026 will come out ahead 2%, to 16.1 million units. This despite devastation in the electric-vehicle market, which is off 30% from a year ago.

Average gas prices are up 40%, but that couldn’t overcome the absence of $7,500 federal EV subsidies and California sales mandates. EV sales now account for just 6.4% of new vehicle sales versus a record 10% a year ago as buyers rushed to buy EVs before the government gravy ended. The beneficiary of high gas prices appears to be gas-electric hybrid vehicles, with sales up 23% year over year. As in 2008, when gas prices first crested $4 a gallon (inflation-adjusted $6.40 today) buyers are looking to fuel-efficient rides.

On a macro level, that means General Motors Co. — which bet on EVs — lost 0.7 percentage points of U.S. market share. That put Toyota — which bet on hybrids — within 129,194 units of becoming America’s sales champ.

Enough of the macro, on to the micro. Here are our Top 10 highlights of Q3 winners and losers:

Read full article here.

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