Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s leading automaker, said Friday that its cumulative sales in the U.S. surpassed the 8 million mark in February, 27 years after its made inroads into the world’s second-largest automotive market.

Hyundai Motor began selling cars in the U.S. in 1986, with a single model, the Hyundai Excel. In that year, some 168,00 Excels were sold.

Hyundai Motor, now the world’s fifth-largest automaker along with its affiliate Kia Motors Corp., achieved the 5 million sales mark in the U.S. in 2007.

The Sonata, a mid-size sedan, was Hyundai Motor’s best-selling model with its cumulative sales in the U.S. reaching 1.94 million units since its debut in 1989.

The Avante model followed with cumulative sales of 1.91 million, according to Hyundai Motor. (Yonhap News)