Whew. What a night! Right? I spent most of the evening giddily going through the data, not believing my eyes. I was expecting a strong result but, wow, even taking into account the extra selling day, many carmakers posted a strong October, and a lot of it was due to the kinds of cars enthusiasts like.
Let’s start with Mazda, which had its second best October ever, including some vehicles I know we love around here. Hybrids? Yes, there were a lot of hybrid sales, too. That’s especially true at Honda, which had its best October in six years. Toyota? They’re finally giving dealers enough new RAV4s (also all hybrids).
What else is going on, uh… Vauxhall has sold 100,000 electric cars, which is a reminder to me that Vauxhall still exists. Are you ready for a Morning Dump written by someone who is unsure how they’re still awake? Let’s roll.
The Mazda3enaissance Is Nigh
Do you have taste? Do you enjoy driving? Do you not need a giant, three-row crossover? The Mazda3 might be the car for you. It is, as Thomas pointed out only last week, both the last stick-shift economy car and also ludicrously nice:
Nearly eight years on, a stick-shift Mazda 3 is still a lovely compact car for keener-than-average drivers. Its shape still elicits desire, it’s still beautifully made, and now it’s your only choice if you want three pedals without hot hatch thirst.
With everything getting expensive, there’s something awfully appealing about a Mazda3. I woke up this morning thinking maybe people agree with me, and Mazda sales are proof, with the brand taking advantage of the extra selling day to report 31,446 sales, up 25% compared to last year. Most of the lineup was up, with cars taking the lead thanks to a 136.7% increase in Mazda3 sales. And what of the MX-5? Why, sales were up 21.5%. The brand did so well it’s almost erased its deficit from earlier this year. Another big winner was the CX-90, which more than doubled in sales (gonna call that one an Autopian bump).
Mazda seems to be benefiting from having a lot of affordable cars in inventory, and is likely doing some heavy pushing on the incentive side as well. Data from LeaseGuru shows that Mazda is pushing strong lease deals across the country, including a $299 lease (with $1839 down) on the base Mazda3 sedan. That’s appealing.
The brand still has work to do, but the fact that Miatas and Mazda3s are helping lead the way shows that the kinds of cars enthusiasts love aren’t obsolete. Americans will surprise you like that.
Honda Rides High On Hybrids
Honda also had a great month, posting its best October in six years, including an all-time high for light trucks (aka crossovers). A lot of it is also up to hybrids:
Overall Honda hybrid sales set a new October record of 32,519 on growth of 5.1% with Civic hybrid accounting for 36% of sales mix and Accord hybrid trims representing 45% of sales mix.
The Passport–which is not available as a hybrid–is also doing quite well, and the high level TrailSport trim now accounts for 80% of that model’s sales (Autopian bump). A couple of interesting quirks from the Honda monthly sales report is that the Prologue was up 48.5%, which feels like dealers dumping the model, but who knows. The Prelude, which is only hybrid, sold 422 units last month, though it’s the first year so it’s hard to say if that’s good or bad.
People Will Buy As Many RAV4s As There Are To Buy
It turns out that Toyota’s strategy of going all-in on hybrid versions of the RAV4, Camry, and Sienna is paying off, especially now that Toyota has been able to get more of the popular crossover into the hands of dealers.
For the year, RAV4 sales are still down more than 26 percent to 293,552 as Toyota ramps up production of the redesigned — and now all-hybrid — crossover across three plants in Canada, Japan and the United States.
But last month, RAV4 sales eked out a 0.6 percent gain to 39,888 over October 2025, making it once again the Japanese brand’s top-selling nameplate in the U.S. The RAV4 lost the title to the Camry sedan for several months as consumers faced long waits to obtain a RAV4 from depleted dealership inventories.
Within the RAV4 line, hybrid models accounted for about 84 percent of the October sales tally, with plug-in hybrids making up the remaining 16 percent, Toyota said.
While not every Toyota is equally popular, it is much like Ferrari in that it has more of an issue finding cars for buyers than buyers for cars.
Congrats, Vauxhall!
Vauxhall, the British marque I keep forgetting is a Stellantis brand, just celebrated the sale of its 100,000th electric vehicle, which was apparently something called a Grandland Electric 213PS Ultimate delivered by a dealership in a place called Nuneaton. Those are a lot of words I definitely understand. Here are some more:
As of October 2026, Vauxhall has sold 102,852 EVs in the UK. Key milestones in the brand’s electrification journey include reaching 10,000 EV sales in 2021 and 50,000 EV sales in 2023, reflecting a tenfold increase in customer demand for Vauxhall electric vehicles.
Vauxhall has always been a champion of electrification, leading the way in electrifying Britain. Since 2021, Vauxhall has been one of the first brands to offer an electric version of every van in its range. Vauxhall was also the UK’s best-selling electric van manufacturer for three years in a row from 2021 to 2023. The Combo Electric is built in the UK at Ellesmere Port, the UK’s first EV-only volume manufacturing plant.
A big congrats to Vaxhaul on its big Grantland sale, and a special shout out the real ones in Nooneaster!
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I heard a bunch of songs about Karma in a row last week and I thought it would be a fun thing to do a theme week. So, for no specific reason, here’s Texas legend Willie Nelson performing “Little Old Fashioned Karma” from his 1983 album Tougher Than Leather. If you want to dance, you gotta pay the band.
The Big Question
What are the most enthusiast cars for sale under $40,000 right now?
Top photo: Mazda
As a former Mazda3 owner, I actually don’t like the appearance of the new Mazda3s that much. The front is too long, looks like there should be an inline 6-cylinder in there.
The rear of the hatch looks pinched. 🙁 I’m glad they still offer a manual, though, and they haven’t ruined the interior like they did with the CX-5.
The sedan is quite attractive, but I’ve never warmed up to the C-pillar on the hatch, which is a shame, because the 1st gen hatch was a looker and hatches are usually more attractive than sedans
Wow it looks like Americans are turning their backs on bland solutions peddled by people that hate us and embracing joy and happiness.
Zoom zoom indeed.
“Stick to cars.”
thanks Dad…
Vauxhall is in an interesting spot of the car brand iceberg (as seen from America) since it’s a zombie brand sold only in one market, but it happens to be a major European one that shares a language with us.
Add the fact that for decades it was a GM brand but now is under the same corporate umbrella as Chrysler and Dodge and…yeah.
How dare you, Sir or Madam, Vauxhall’s badges are sold along with their matching Opels in TWO countries, the UK and Ireland, which makes it sold both in the European Union and in the used to be and soon to be EU.
I believe they are no longer sold in the Republic, although it’s possible that many find their way in from the UK – it’s popular to buy used cars there as they can be cheaper.
I believe Vauxhall has been gone from Ireland for almost 50 years now, but it coincides with the period when they transitioned to being minimum effort rebadged Opels, so it makes some sense that nobody noticed
I could’ve sworn this was going to be about the other big news from last night – you know, the release of this season’s first NCAA College Football Playoff rankings! Alabama came in well ahead of Tennessee despite having lost the head-to-head matchup a month ago. Chaos reigns, and this weekend’s games should provide a lot of clarity (and also likely more automotive commercials, since advertising the last several months has been frustratingly dominated by non-vehicle content)
A) Alabama being no. 5 shows how there aren’t many dominant teams this year
B) Alabama should NOT be no. 5
C) Good chance they lose at least one more and drop all the way to, like, 8 or so
My college sucks at football. So, my favorite team is The Choas Mayhems. They are having a hell of a season. I expect this weekend will be another good weekend for them.
TBQ:
BRZ/86
No question.
My commute to work is endlessly fun and even though mine was a bit over $40k (the Hakone only comes with ALL the boxes checked and mine has sport exhaust and some other goodies) you can have plenty o’ fun for less.
I bought a used ’24 for well under 40 at the start of the year and it’s been great so far.
I went with a neptune, but would have 100% gone with a Hakone if I could have found one that was as good as the Neptune at only 8k miles
Yeah, I ordered it the day they were available in October of ’24 and even then I got bounced to another dealer once allocations were finalized. It was a nail biter for the next four months until it showed up and the dealer said he had multiple people and dealers trying to snipe it. I was super lucky to have gotten one and love it immensely.
it is quite beautifully done. but I love the vibrancy of the Neptune paint color.
The Hakone looks soooo good too. They’re crazy for not offering that green paint option across the line.
I bought my Neptune MT new in ’22 for just under $30k OTD and that included a few minor dealer add-ons. Base model, though. I did have the engine warrantied around 34k, but it seems like the issues were pretty much 1st year and some learners money shifting and I’ve got 125k on it now. I replaced a battery around 90k. I worked about 165 miles away yesterday and drove home doing 85-90 and I still ended up at a hair under 30 mpg. Today I did 75-80 and got 33. It also fits a surprising amount of crap in it. Great car.
Vauxhall, the next largest badge producer after Zhejiang Cangnan Jinxiang Badge Factory which I keep forgetting poses as a car manufacturer.
Vauxhall doesn’t actually make the badges, I believe that’s handled by a Chinese factory controlled by a Japanese-based OEM supplier
TBQ:
Miata, BRZ/86, Elantra N are good candidates up for serious debate. A step more mature is the Integra with manual; a bit weak on the engine front but a nice unit otherwise. Mustang is surprisingly good in base form now as well
Going to throw a base 2-door Wranger Sport with the manual in the mix. Cool vehicle, nothing like it…well, except the base 2-door Bronco with the manual, but that falls just on the wrong side of 40K
People are vary enthusiastic about rav4 and ionic 5 they can be had at $40k normally.
As far as traditional you or left with models from Mazda and Suburu.
The sleeper might be the Jetta. Drives well is an ok value. Just normal vag issues and don’t expect the interior to survive over 8 years.
I know I should be grateful the 3 exists with a stick at all, in beautiful (if perhaps impractical) hatch form no less. But I can’t help but wish they offered a spicier version of it, and offered the stick with all trims. With the still well equipped base model it’s easier to justify as something unique. When it’s only offered with the top trim it feels to me like it’s a bit expensive for what it is and still in a uncomfortable middle ground between being too sporty for the average driver but not sporty enough for enthusiasts. Just looked at Mazda’s configurator while reading this article and at $32k I could be looking at the still slightly underpowered but more overtly sporty Civic Si, for $1K more get an ugly WRX but it’s got 80 more hp and awd and a huge aftermarket to sharpen it up, or for another $3K I could gamble on a Hyundai turbo motor product and get a bona fide performance car that has gotten almost universally positive reviews.
Yea, it falls in a weird place for me too. If it were in the base model, I’d be all over it. But it comes with a pretty significant premium over the base, yet it’s not a hot hatch—It has the same drivetrain as the base. That means I’m paying $5k purely for the stick, which is way too much. If I am about to spend $31k I’m looking at the Honda Civic Hybrid and Civic Si, which come with a significant MPG bump or HP bump respectively. The 3 does look nice though.
Yeh I know enthusiasts have said for years don’t just offer the stick in the poverty spec base model, but only offering it in premium trim also isn’t making sense to me. Part of the problem is that you’re alluding to is whether with a stick or not the top trim fwd 3 is just not very competitively priced. I mean personally I’d take it over a Civic hybrid but the Si offers 15 more hp out of the box (and torquey turbo hp at that) and if you got bored of it is easily tuned to make more.
Gosh, they need to bring back Mazdaspeed so much. The people crave Zoom-Zoom.
CorkSport’s doing a pretty good job of making them zoom zoom, though. While there’s not as much aftermarket support as I’d like, you can still do all the usual bolt ons for suspension and the engine, you can upgrade the fuel pump and tune it, and there is of course the TCR body kit if you’re crazy like me.
I kind of looked into it a little but I mean on an already highly tuned NA motor what’s a 91octane tune and fuel pump worth-10hp?
Honestly it’s not worth a ton. I have the turbo variant and I think fuel pump, tune, and an exhaust is good for 25-30 HP. A sneaky underrated thing for this car is doing the intake. It doesn’t really do anything for power figures, but with the OEM intake power falls off a cliff at 5000 RPM, and very noticably so at that. With CorkSport’s SRI/heat shield, mine pulls hard all the way to redline. Plus you get the fun turbo noises, so while it doesn’t appreciably make the car faster, it *IS* more fun to drive.
Yeh I really wish they hadn’t thrown out the Zoom zoom lol I realize as enthusiasts we probably over estimate our own importance as an audience but I can’t help but wonder if it was a bad call for Mazda to go after this entry luxury thing they’re going for and leaving enthusiasts largely behind. I think Mazda was the sleeper brand your car enthusiast friend convinced you to check out instead of a Toyota or Honda (I know I steered a couple friends toward them) and if enthusiasts lose their enthusiasm they don’t get whatever that car person evangelism is good for.
Yep. Mazda, that’s why I so giddily couldn’t sleep last night.
Stellar song choice.
Good for Mazda, I want them to survive and thrive even if they bodged the CX-5.
The CR-V is a near-perfect match for the market if we ignore the headgasket problems but I think the RAV4 hybrid system is objectively better and Honda is fortunate they are having supply limitations.
Still want to see an article from here examining why it is the Accord has fallen so sharply while the Camry has maintained strong sales in that declining segment. Those two rivals used to be very close year after year, but the Accord has been losing ground since ~2020 and is now down 100-150K units a year to the Toyota. That’s more than the CR-V has gained over that time.
No one’s curious? Enthusiasts were gaga over the Accord until recently, even after it became a big barge with no V6 and no manual.
the non-hybrid Accord is turbo-only, and Honda has had some issues with the 1.5T 🙁
Don’t forget about the hybrid’s having headgasket issues.
This generation of Accord is pretty meh. Understyled exterior, lack of some creature comforts in the interior (i.e. no center console USB-C ports or air vents in the rear), insufficient sound insulation, and no 2.0T or V6 meaning the Civic hybrid really steps on the Accord’s toes.
Enthusiasts could look past the V6 because the 2.0T was so good, with German levels of power underrating and a good 8-speed auto that isn’t a slushbox.
I think the bigger question is why would someone pick the Accord over the Camry at this point? Neither comes in enthusiast form and the Accord is no longer considered ultra-reliable, with known major problems in the hybrid and non-hybrid form.
I know a couple people who were repeat Accord buyers over the years. They both switched to Civics on their latest purchases. I haven’t asked why. It could have been price, but I suspect the Accord just got bigger than they needed and the Civic is so close to what the Accord once was. One joined Honda Canada a couple years ago, so perhaps he wanted to buy the Canadian built car.
I think there is a bigger gap in size between the Camry and Corolla, so they might not poach sales from each other.
I personally think the Accord buyer of old either gets a Civic since they’re roughly the same size or moves into a CRV since it gets the same fuel economy as the accord of old. My parents are this type of buyer, they went Mazda6 over accord though. When I got my 2022 Si my mom was blown away with how big it was. She thought it was an Accord. Toyota doesn’t have as much of an overlap issue since the corolla is still tiny, but look at prius sales now that the Carmy is all hybrid. That is a car that doesn’t need to exist anymore.
I wonder if size has anything to do with it. I am always mistaking new Civics for the Accord, and the Accord itself is so big it looks like it should be wearing Lincoln badges, or something. Whereas the Corolla is still on the smaller side, so there’s a bigger gap between it and the Camry. I can’t see the Corolla cannabilizing many Camry sales, but it’s not hard to see why someone could go in looking for an Accord and drive home in a Civic instead.
To expand on this, I think Camry benefits from cannibalization at the dealership while Accord suffers from it.
At the Toyota dealership, sales people steer RAV4 buyers into AWD Camrys because there are no RAV4s on the lot. And they upsell Prius buyers into Camrys because you can get a bigger nicer car with the same MPGs.
Meanwhile at the Honda dealership, CRVs are plentiful if that’s what you came in for, and Accord buyers get siphoned off by both the Civic (similar size lower price) and CRV (trendier body style, similar MPG and price).
Others have mentioned size creep, but I also think the Accord had more appeal in the past vs the Camry as it was a bit better of a driver, but now that the Camry has reportedly upped its game or at least looks sportier, combined with Honda’s HG issues and the crazy mileage of the hybrid-only Camry, I think the buyers that didn’t go Civic or CUV went to Toyota.
TBQ: “What are the most enthusiast cars for sale under $40,000 right now?”
Elantra N (It’s under $40K US). Great handling, great power, good interior space, LSD and lots of features. High grin factor.
And you can still get a stick. I went DCT, but…I kinda feel like I should have bought the stick. But, better highway mileage with the DCT, and I have bad knees and ankles.
Anyway, it’s a ripping fun ride.
It’s the best option sub $40k if you need a do it all.
I struggle to think of cars below $40K, actual on the lot pricing and not advertised MSRP for nonexistent base models. Actual enthusiast cars under that price totally blanking on.
Saw a new base model Miata a few months ago on the lot, was tempting at something like $29k.
Will there be a slide in hybrids in near-term if fuel prices drop?
One hopes not. But we’ve got a bad habit as a society of not learning from things.
But I’ll say this: it’s not for lack of trying to ramp up at Toyota for RAV4 supply. Those plants which are running are running on all shifts, and genuinely trying to get more cars out. So I’m not entirely sure what’s causing the supply constraints.
Unless they can’t get the vehicle type they want, or have a particularly problem-ridden ownership experience, most people have a hard time giving up a hybrid once they’ve had one.
To your question, I don’t think so. I consider myself an enthusiast. I love my Tacoma X-Runner because it’s manual and pretty analog, and engaging to drive.
My wife got a Civic hybrid and man, that thing is such a good commuter car. When I get a normal ICE rental now it makes me yearn for the instant throttle response a good hybrid offers, and I’m willing to bet non-enthusiasts notice the difference as well. The hybrid is 10% more expensive MSRP, so it’s not unnoticeable, but I think it is a worthy cost increase.
Now that most models use the hybrid powertrain as the upgrade engine option rather than a parallel model below a more powerful pure-ICE, I don’t see hybrid marketshare dropping by too much. I could see it dropping if compact crossover customers start going downgrading to subcompact crossovers due to price, as the subcompact segment really lacks hybrid options.
As much as I’d like to get a hybrid or EV, I gotta say I wouldn’t mind replacing my 2013 GTI with a Mazda 3 hatchback manual transmission. Similar gas mileage (slightly better on paper) but a brand new manual transmission in 2026? Yes, please. Oh, we have a CX-30 so we like the controls and all already.
I used to have a 2009 GTI, and my partner has a 2018 Mazda3 (auto). Not exactly apples to apples, but the GTI was definitely the more engaging car to drive. The Mazda3 reminds me of the standard Golf. It drives very well, even kinda fun to throw into the corners, it’s comfortable, efficient and practical, but it isn’t a hot hatchback.
It wouldn’t be hard for Mazda to make one though. Just pair the turbo engine with the manual, tweak the suspension just a bit, a couple cosmetic changes, and boom, you have a MazdaSpeed3. Bonus points for manual plus AWD.
https://tenor.com/view/sea-bear-spongebob-safety-anti-sea-bear-circle-spongebob-funny-gif-8782259290133626566
Okay who else read the headline, saw the photo and thought Mazda had cancelled the Miata ?
That headline and top shot combo was just mean and you know Matt did it on purpose.
They’ve threatened to give it a substantial refresh. It might actually be a good time to buy it before they put in a giant screen and make it a muscle car. Who knows.
My thoughts as well. Not really upset about it, as it was well played.
Wait, really?!?!
Where the headline breaks from line one to line two: “Mazda Quietly Killed It…” with a pic of the Miata.
You gotta read to the end people.
I was wondering about the color. The “green” I’ve seen pics of was almost gray.
Give us a Hybrid Ridgeline Trailsport!
TBQ? Mazda.
I totally forgot Vauxhall existed as a brand until I saw a Grandland on the street in London last year.
What are the most enthusiast cars for sale under $40,000 right now?
The BRZ/GT86 still being around brings some joy to my heart. The mustang withe the RTR package just comes in at 43K, but im sure you could find one under 40.
We’re on the waiting list for a RAV4 at just about every dealership within a 4 hour drive. Because we want the woodland, PHEV and in the green. Those only come from the plant in Japan and have fast charging built in. Should be getting some updates this week on allocations for the month. But not in a rush which helps.
This is quite possibly the finest election report that has ever been delivered [you know, if that’s what it is, or if I choose to infer anything at all, one way or t’other].
Someone at Toyota is going to be fired, or at least demoted. Toyota has held on to that best selling non-pickup title for years and in the past has gone to great lengths to maintain that title. Management is going to be pissed when Honda takes that title from them.
Honda’s success is largely due to the lack of RAV-4, but it is also helped significantly by the fact that they still offer non-hybrid versions in segments where Toyota is hybrid only.
So while I’m a big fan of Hybrids and have only purchased Hybrids for our daily drivers for over 10 years, there are still a lot of people out there that are “scared” of hybrids or don’t see the value in the higher price.
Indeed, they have the winning formula for the biggest non-truck segment and they can’t provide enough to even meet the prior year’s customer demand. Company brass cannot be happy about leaving so many sales on the table.
One counterpoint to the non-hybrid point is the Accord. It still offers both ICE-only and hybrid options vs the Camry as hybrid-only, and the Camry has been mopping the floor with it in sales. Not sure exactly what to attribute to that, but the disparity is striking.
Yeah I’m not sure why the Accord has lost its luster, it used to be in the running but since 2020 it has been far behind the Camry to the point where Toyota sold more than twice as many Camrys as Accords in 2025.
Nah Toyota isn’t GM; Toyota thinks about success further than the next quarter.
No Toyota does care about those sales numbers. In the past they have done big fleet dumps and deep retail discounts on the Camry to keep it in the #1 position. Even if they were more concerned with the long term that doesn’t mean heads won’t roll because of all the lost sales and profits from being unable to meet RAV-4 demand.
Hybrids, hybrids, hybrids,same old song. And a good one.
I was driving a Vauxhall Grandland hybrid around ireland a couple weeks ago. And it was perfectly acceptable although maybe a little larger than I would have preferred. Had to do an Internet search to see who was making them these days.
Funny to hear cowboys singing about karma and not Indians…
Willie’s kind of half-and-half.
Is he a hybrid?