Hyundai's Solaris stays top-selling foreign car

Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's leading carmaker, said Friday that its Solaris subcompact retained the title of the top-selling foreign car in Russia in June with the model's sales reaching an all-time high. Hyundai said sales of the Solaris reached a record 10,833 units in June, which surpassed the previous monthly record of 10,280 set by Ford's Focus in December 2006. June marks the third straight month that Hyundai's subcompact has led sales among foreign brand cars in the Russian market. The Focus, which had been a market leader in the past, trailed with sales of 9,156 units last month, with Renault's Logan model coming in third with 8,785 vehicles. The Solaris, a localized version of the Accent and made at Hyundai's St. Petersburg plant, was first produced in January with official sales beginning the following month. The four-door sedan is powered by either a 1.4-liter engine capable of producing 109 horsepower or a larger 1.6-liter unit with 124 horsepower. Hyundai, meanwhile, said that its overall car sales, buoyed by the sales of the Solaris, reached 15,131 units in June, with overall sales in the first half surging 102 percent on-year to 67,213 vehicles. To meet the rise in demand, the St. Petersburg plant will adopt a three-shift system starting next month, raising its annual production from 150,000 units to 200,000 vehicles by year's end, Hyundai said.