More new, updated SUV models available for 2019 to meet demand

The best-selling Toyota model in the U.S. is no longer the Corolla or the Camry. It's the compact RAV4 crossover sport utility. Its strong sales mirror what's happening in the auto industry, and there's an all-new RAV4 for 2019 to stay competitive. And once again, it's available as a hybrid model.

As buyers gravitate toward SUV models instead of sedans, auto brands keep coming up with new or revised ones. Hyundai will soon have a wide array of crossovers, from small to large, and the Tucson falls into the trending compact category. A few styling updates for 2019 should help it remain a strong seller.

Meanwhile, Mazda's got its own strong seller in the compact category, the CX-5. New options for 2019 are an upscale Signature trim line, and a hot new 227-horsepower turbo engine that really makes it scoot.

This SUV does actually "zoom-zoom," even though Mazda doesn't use that particular tag line anymore. The CX-5 is part of Mazda's sport utility vehicle line, with the small CX-3 positioned below it, and the larger CX-9 above. And recently, Mazda announced a new model, the CX-30, which will be positioned between the CX-3 and CX-5 in the Mazda lineup.

Mazda's strategy of adding new models in between existing ones is what's happening across the auto industry. Car makers are adding new SUVs wherever they feel they're needed, in some cases bringing back model names from the past.

For example, Honda wanted to slot something in between the hot selling CR-V and the larger Pilot, so they've got a new model called the Passport. That name may sound familiar, as Honda used it in the 1990s on an Isuzu-built SUV. The new 2019 Passport is all Honda, and offers sporty driving characteristics, along with true off-road ability with the all-wheel drive version.

And there's another new SUV with a name from the past, the 2019 Blazer from Chevrolet. Yes, Chevy used to sell Blazers years ago, but no, this one isn't anything like those. It was designed to serve crossover SUV on-road duty, which is what most people use SUVs for these days.

"Most people" really applies to this entire segment as well. SUVs like these are what most people are buying.