In a company first, recreational vehicles accounted for more than half of Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp.’s annual sales so far this year, the automakers said Sunday.

According to the latest sales data, Hyundai Motor sold 87,923 vehicles during the first two months of this year, of which 41,027 units were classified as recreational vehicles, accounting for 46.7 percent.

Recreational vehicles by Korean classification are designed for recreational purposes such as camping and include the likes of SUVs, multipurpose vehicles and minivans.

Kia sold a total of 69,565 units over the same period, among which 40,911 were also recreational models, accounting for 58.8 percent of the automaker’s total sales.

When it comes to sales of the two brands together, both of which are owned by Hyundai Motor Group, recreational models stood at 81,983 out of 157,488 units sold, accounting for 52 percent of their total sales.

Though early in the year, the companies said it marks the first time recreational models have surpassed half of their accumulated annual sales.

The sales feat comes as car camping has emerged as a new activity in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

When broken down by model, 3,155 units of the luxury SUV Genesis GV80 released last year were sold between January and February, up 107.2 percent from the previous year.

GV70, the lower-priced sister model, sold 4,973 units, while sales of the new Tuscon totaled 12,602 units, up 281.9 percent from the same period a year prior.

Kia’s recreational sales have been buoyed by the 2022 Carnival and Sorento, with 14,196 and 12,425 units sold respectively, up 142.2 percent and 224.6 percent in sales compared to the previous year.

Hyundai and Kia’s sales of recreational models saw 64.7 percent and 68.7 percent year-on-year increases, respectively, between January and February.

The figures draw a contrast with both companies’ sedan sales, as Hyundai’s were up 20.7 percent while Kia’s decreased 14.41 percent during the same period.

By Yim Hyun-su (hyunsu@heraldcorp.com)