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 because of 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 in the event you pay for the Wind trim. It even has a brand new voice assistant capable of refine its responses and command recognition, so hopefully, it will not by chance set off itself once you’re jamming out to

Spotify
. Thoughts you, Apple says the identical factor about

Siri
.

It ought to — by all rights — be a stable

electric car
for the individuals who need one, but it surely additionally made me understand 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 means out, and for as soon as I am really supportive of the best way the world goes, so long as inexpensive choices stick round too.

Why sedans ought to disappear

A pattern already in progress

Honda

Once I was rising up in Canada (and visiting the US) in the course of the ’80s and ’90s, sedans have been all over the place. On reflection, they have been the “default” automotive for North America — you solely purchased one thing else to accommodate area of interest calls for. In the event you needed ample cargo area, you acquire a van, a truck, or a station wagon; in the event you needed to economize, you acquire a compact hatchback. Even lots of highschool youngsters ended up getting used sedans as starter autos.

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 sensible in the event you’re a home-owner who’s largely touring forwards and backwards to work, sometimes shuttling youngsters round, taking holidays, or having an evening out. However in the event you’re repeatedly shifting from house to house — like many millennials and Gen Zers — a sedan cannot match that many containers, not to mention giant items of furnishings. And even as soon as you have settled right into a home, there is a good likelihood you will be occurring weekend runs to shops like Dwelling Depot, Greatest Purchase, or IKEA. Few issues are extra irritating than carting a TV or stack of lumber out to your automotive solely to comprehend it will not match.

Youngsters exacerbate the state of affairs. My spouse and I solely have one little one, however like many individuals nowadays, we do not have handy kin or babysitters close by. Our son and his booster seat have to return together with us on many errands, shrinking the quantity of cargo area even additional. In that sense, I actually cannot blame dad and mom for getting 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 area than a sedan, however nonetheless sufficiently small to be inexpensive and slot in a single-car storage. We nonetheless run into area issues typically, but it surely’s normally nothing some artistic 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 area 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 facets of this trajectory I do not like. Many SUVs are nonetheless unnecessarily enormous, blocking lanes and sightlines in visitors, and naturally posing a extra critical risk in the event that they hit one thing. The identical will also be stated of many vehicles, which frequently do not even carry cargo. In locations like Alberta and Texas, it looks like 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, at the very least till robotaxis and different totally self-driving automobiles are an omnipresent actuality. They do serve a objective. However each the optimistic and adverse developments in place appear to be urgent exhausting, and I would fairly issues skew within the course of practicality than faux we’re all well-off professionals who get every little thing huge and heavy delivered by white-glove companies.

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The affordability difficulty

One last thought

Honda

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

I am comparatively optimistic on that entrance, just because know-how retains evolving, and buyer demand is sure to maintain issues in test. There’ll all the time be somebody recent out of faculty who wants an affordable journey — the business cannot faux that everybody is able to shell out $40,000 or extra for his or her ultimate do-it-all-mobile.

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