SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Yonhap) -- Sales of gasoline-powered cars in South Korea rose this year from the previous year despite high local fuel prices, an industry report showed Wednesday.

The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) report showed that in the first eight months of the year 67.5 percent of all passenger cars sold in the country used expensive gasoline compared to cheaper diesel and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

Passenger cars cover both sedans and so-called recreational vehicles.

This marks a 1.8 percentage point gain from 65.7 percent tallied in the same eight month period in 2010, with combined sales of gasoline cars hitting 545,813 units at the end of August, up from 513,038 vehicles reported in the previous year.

KAMA said that South Korean drivers placed greater importance on a smooth, quieter ride that comes from a gasoline engine compared to better fuel economy offered by diesel-driven vehicles.

Gasoline cars also have better engine output vis-a-vis LPG cars.

Reflecting such market demands, the latest report showed the percentage of LPG and diesel driven cars sold in the country falling to 32.5 percent in the January-August period this year, from 34.3 percent tallied in the previous year.

Local carmakers such as Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. said better fuel economy of the latest gasoline cars and introduction of hybrids such as the Sonata and K5 helped sales.