Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp are accelerating their retreat from diesel, initiating plans to halt sales of three diesel-powered vehicles - the Hyundai Tucson, Hyundai Staria, and Kia Carnival - as early as September 2025. This marks a major step in the automakers’ transition toward eco-friendly powertrains.

According to dealer delivery information confirmed on Tuesday, the production of Kia’s Carnival diesel model will end in August 2025, while the Tucson and Staria diesel models will be sold only while supplies last.

Once the existing stock runs out, Hyundai Motor will no longer offer any diesel vehicles for sale, and Kia’s Sorento will remain the lone diesel model across the Hyundai Motor Group lineup.

Just a year ago, the group offered five diesel models: Hyundai’s Tucson and Palisade, and Kia’s Sportage, Sorento, and Carnival. The sharp reduction reflects a decisive shift toward electrification and hybridization amid tightening environmental regulations and plummeting consumer demand for diesel.

Hyundai Motor’s move to discontinue the Staria diesel, a popular MPV, is closely tied to the automaker’s ongoing investment in electric vehicle production.

The market’s shift away from diesel has been dramatic. In 2020, South Korea’s five major automakers sold 316,000 diesel vehicles, far surpassing hybrids and EVs. But just two years later, diesel sales dropped to 135,000 units while hybrids rose to 183,000.

Only 22,000 diesel vehicles were sold in the first half of 2025. Full-year projections estimate fewer than 50,000 diesel units, compared to 203,000 hybrids and 72,000 electric vehicles over the same period, representing a tenfold and threefold lead respectively.

The used car market tells the same story. Data from platform K Car Co. shows diesel’s share fell to 14.9 percent in the first half of 2025, down from 18.4 percent a year earlier and 20.9 percent in 2023.

Among global brands, diesel is also becoming a rarity. Of the 26 automakers tracked by the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, only five - Audi, Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW), Ford, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen - still sell diesel vehicles. And only Audi and Volkswagen have any new diesel models in the pipeline.

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