While it’s not surprising when a long-running model vehicle gets the axe at the start of a new year, something about the 2023 model year feels particularly... concerning. A slew of models won’t be returning this year, ranging from exotics to more than a few small, affordable cars. Get ready to pour one out for every model that’s been discontinued for 2023.
There was nothing ever really that interesting about the ILX. Essentially a much nicer, 9th-gen Civic Si, the ILX served as Acura’s entry level model. An update in 2019 brought it more in line with the rest of the lineup. Honestly, it wasn’t bad looking. But that wasn’t enough to save it, as Acura announced the ILX was getting canned for 2023 to make room for the new Integra.
Can you believe the Encore has been around since 2012? The smallest Buick you can buy is getting sent to the great dealership in the sky for the 2023 model year. What was once a strong seller for the brand has been replaced by the slightly larger and misleadingly named Encore GX.
The smallest and cheapest Chevy you could buy is gone for 2023. It may not have been the biggest, and it may have been slow as hell with its 98-horsepower engine, but where else were you going to find a brand-new car with a warranty and a seven-inch touchscreen for under $15,000? Its demise comes with a startling truth: Chevy would much rather you drive a Trax now.
The Ecosport probably won’t be missed by many. This is a vehicle that Jason Torchinsky once said was designed around a lot of compromises: It drove worse and wasn’t much bigger than the old Focus hatchback. It just never really made sense for our market. And now it’s gone.
The GTs demise shouldn’t be surprising, as it’s a low-volume supercar. Despite that, the third generation of Ford’s Le Mans winning supercar wowed fans and owners alike when it debuted in 2016. The final run of GTs were limited edition, half-million dollar examples that paid tribute to the brand racing wins.
Honda’s on-again-off-again hybrid is getting the axe yet again for the 2023 model year. It’s the third time the model has gone away since the nameplate was introduced at the turn of the century. Its demise makes way for an all new Civic Hybrid that’s coming next year, which was pretty much what the Insight was anyway.
The killing of small cars continues with the Accent. One of the cheapest new cars in America is getting the boot for 2023 because Hyundai would rather you drive a crossover. That’s right. Hyundai would prefer to sell you a Venue crossover instead of a small sedan.
No, that IONIQ isn’t dead. The new one isn’t either (of course). We’re talking about the original IONIQ, the liftback with the Prius-like styling. This is another death that isn’t as surprising, as Hyundai seems to be taking the IONIQ brand to other places that this IONIQ wouldn’t exactly fit. While the original IONIQ was available in hybrid and EV models, the last holdout was the hybrid which is gone for 2023.
One of the last coupes left on the market is gone for 2023. While the Q60 had gained some traction with the tuner crowd the last few years, buyers mostly avoided it. On paper, its specs looked promising — at least on the Red Sport 400 trim. Who wouldn’t want a sexy looking luxury coupe with a 400 hp twin turbo V6? No one, apparently, which explains why from July to September 2022 only 676 were sold.
After 10 years and many wild variants, the last Aventador rolled off the production line this fall. While the company hasn’t said anything about a replacement, Lamborghini did confirm that this would also be the company’s last V12 powered model.
Introduced for the 2018 model year, the RX L was a model that dealers had been begging Lexus for. They needed something to sell customers that had a third row since no other Lexus vehicle had one. But now an all new RX has debuted without a third row, and a new three-row model called TX (and based on the coming Toyota Grand Highlander) is coming. So after just four short years on the market, the RX L is no more.
The death of the A-Class for 2023 comes with a harsh reality: Mercedes has no interest in selling cheaper, attainable cars anymore. The brand is embracing its luxury image and wants to sell luxury cars. Its unfortunate that Mercedes realized this so soon. The A-Class (and its CLA brother) are big improvements over the previous CLA.
Another crossover in a long line of other SUVs and crossovers where “sport” had no real meaning, the second smallest Nissan crossover is gone for 2023. Introduced for the 2018 model year as a way to obtain more volume for the brand, the Rouge Sport’s spot in the Nissan lineup started to make less sense as the years went on. The Kicks below it was cheaper and more appealing, and the redesigned Rogue was finally competitive.
There was a time when it seemed like small, European-esque cargo vans were becoming a thing in our market. You had offerings like the Mercedes Metris, Nissan NV200 and its Chevy City Express badge job, and Ford Transit Connect. Now with the death of the ProMaster City for 2023, every single one is gone.
The Avalon gets the boot for 2023 as the all-new Crown takes the top sedan spot at Toyota. Its unfortunate too. While it’s still basically a Japanese Buick, the Avalon had actually grown into a rather handsome looking sedan. Having a TRD version of it wasn’t bad, either.
After a nearly 50 year run, the Passat is dead for 2023. The U.S. got a version of the Passat that was specifically for our market and pretty different from ones sold around the world. VW celebrated the Passat’s run by making 1,973 special edition models that commemorate the model’s introduction in the early 1970s.