I am eagerly awaiting the dying of the sedan

One of many highlights of the 2025 New York Worldwide Auto Present was the Kia EV4, presently resulting from attain the US in early 2026. It was notable for just a few causes: uncommon styling, twin 12.3-inch touchscreens, and as much as 330 miles (531 kilometers) of vary when you pay for the Wind trim. It even has a brand new voice assistant in a position to refine its responses and command recognition, so hopefully, it will not unintentionally set off itself while you’re jamming out to

Spotify
. Thoughts you, Apple says the identical factor about

Siri
.

It ought to — by all rights — be a strong

electric car
for the individuals who need one, nevertheless it additionally made me notice one thing — I’ve completely zero curiosity in sedans anymore, irrespective of how well-built or futuristic they’re. Certainly, the format appears to be on its approach out, and for as soon as I am truly supportive of the way in which the world goes, so long as inexpensive choices stick round too.

Why sedans ought to disappear

A development already in progress

Honda

Once I was rising up in Canada (and visiting the US) through the ’80s and ’90s, sedans had been in all places. Looking back, they had been the “default” automotive for North America — you solely purchased one thing else to accommodate area of interest calls for. Should you needed ample cargo house, you obtain a van, a truck, or a station wagon; when you needed to save cash, you obtain a compact hatchback. Even a whole lot of highschool youngsters ended up getting used sedans as starter automobiles.

You possibly can nonetheless purchase new sedans, however in North America they have been eclipsed in reputation by SUVs, vehicles, and crossovers. Whereas it is tough to trace down up-to-the-minute information, in 2019, SUVs accounted for 47.7% of US gross sales (per a New York Times report) versus simply 22.1% for sedans. Even some sports activities automotive manufacturers have added SUVs to their lineups. I see Porsche Cayennes on the street on a regular basis — irrespective of that purchasing an SUV for efficiency is akin to purchasing a Bowie knife to cut up dinner greens.

A sedan is smart when you’re a home-owner who’s largely touring backwards and forwards to work, sometimes shuttling youngsters round, taking holidays, or having an evening out. However when you’re often transferring from condominium to condominium — like many millennials and Gen Zers — a sedan cannot match that many bins, not to mention giant items of furnishings. And even as soon as you’ve got settled right into a home, there is a good likelihood you will be occurring weekend runs to shops like Residence Depot, Finest Purchase, or IKEA. Few issues are extra irritating than carting a TV or stack of lumber out to your automotive solely to appreciate it will not match.

Youngsters exacerbate the state of affairs. My spouse and I solely have one baby, however like many individuals lately, we do not have handy kin or babysitters close by. Our son and his booster seat have to come back together with us on many errands, shrinking the quantity of cargo house even additional. In that sense, I actually cannot blame dad and mom for purchasing full-sized SUVs, even when most of them do not want a Nissan Armada or Chevy Tahoe to take their youngsters to judo classes.

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The street forward

Adapting kind components for the 2020s

Chevrolet

When my spouse and I purchased a brand new automotive in 2022, we selected the Hyundai Venue, which is a compact crossover SUV. It is the best format for us — extra cargo house than a sedan, however nonetheless sufficiently small to be inexpensive and slot in a single-car storage. We nonetheless run into house issues typically, nevertheless it’s normally nothing some inventive seat manipulation cannot repair. I am unable to think about attempting to do the identical issues with my previous Buick Regal.

In that regard, I really feel that crossovers and different small SUVs are rightfully taking up, particularly since they permit sufficient house for bigger batteries on EV fashions. The Chevy Equinox EV (above) is spectacular to me as one thing underneath $34,000 with a 319-mile (513-kilometer) vary. I would like to see 300-mile ranges on compact hatchbacks, too, however the tech in all probability will not be there till solid-state batteries arrive round 2030.

There are some features of this trajectory I do not like. Many SUVs are nonetheless unnecessarily big, blocking lanes and sightlines in visitors, and naturally posing a extra severe risk in the event that they hit one thing. The identical may also be stated of many vehicles, which frequently do not even carry cargo. In locations like Alberta and Texas, it looks as if lots of people get one simply to slot in with the native cowboy tradition, and/or to really feel robust on the streets.

Will sedans disappear utterly? I doubt it, a minimum of till robotaxis and different totally self-driving automobiles are an omnipresent actuality. They do serve a objective. However each the constructive and detrimental traits in place appear to be urgent arduous, and I would reasonably issues skew within the route of practicality than fake we’re all well-off professionals who get every thing large and heavy delivered by white-glove providers.

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The affordability challenge

One last thought

Honda

I do have one different concern, and that is pricing traits. Even compact crossovers are typically costlier than sedans, so there’s the chance that our procuring habits will inadvertently push some folks out of the auto market, significantly if corporations cannot work out a solution to construct a worthwhile EV equal of sub-compacts just like the Honda Match. The trade goes to go all-electric, ultimately.

I am comparatively optimistic on that entrance, just because know-how retains evolving, and buyer demand is certain to maintain issues in test. There’ll all the time be somebody contemporary out of faculty who wants an inexpensive trip — the trade cannot fake that everybody is able to shell out $40,000 or extra for his or her best do-it-all-mobile.

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