Hyundai is expected to outsell Ford in quarterly U.S. sales for the first time, according to a new forecast from Cox Automotive.

The South Korean automaker is projected to sell 511,421 vehicles from July through September, up 6.5% from a year earlier. Ford is expected to sell 504,172, down 7.1%.

That would make Hyundai the third best-selling automaker in America, behind General Motors and Toyota.

Cox analysts pointed to Detroit’s thin hybrid lineups. Buyers are moving toward hybrids as gas prices stay high, but GM offers a hybrid only in the Corvette, while Ford’s hybrids are limited to the Maverick and F-150 pickups.

“If you don’t have vehicles to catch consumers where they are, then there are other manufacturers that likely would step into the gap,” Cox analyst Erin Keating said.

Cox also raised its 2026 U.S. sales forecast to 16.1 million vehicles.

Ford responded that it continues to outsell Hyundai through August and blamed tariffs and costs for making Korean production more advantageous.