By Carl Malek
In a statement released to reporters at the New York Auto Show, Hyundai Motor America CEO John Krafcik revealed that the 2013 Santa Fe will formally replace the Hyundai Veracruz when the latter ceases production “around November.” Hyundai formally revealed the all-new 2013 Santa Fe last Wednesday, showcasing the new model in both five- and seven-passenger variants for the assembled media.
By Kevin Gordon
There is a wonderful trend happening in the automotive world. Small cars no longer need to be automatically considered economy cars. The team at Autosavant has now had a chance to sample most of the cars in this class and if you read them you’ll notice they are some of the most positive words we put to pixels around here. The Hyundai Accent would like to add its name to that list. The recently redesigned Accent wears a family familiar face and carries an impressive options list. Read on for our full impression and to see if the Accent has graduated from the economy class. Continue Reading →
By Chris Haak
It’s time to take Hyundai seriously as an automaker. Akio Toyoda certainly knows this, as much of Hyundai’s current lineup takes direct aim at his company’s products, and often manages to top Toyota in a number of areas, while undercutting the Japanese company’s prices.
The Equus is certainly no joke. It is a credible competitor for the established luxury brands at a price thousands of dollars below the asking price of those other cars. GM, the once-and-future “world’s largest automaker” makes no product even close to what the Equus delivers.
By Chris Haak
With fuel prices still high – and volatile – US consumers are flocking in greater numbers to more fuel-efficient vehicles. According to research that Hyundai shared with a group of journalists this morning in Charleston, SC, the subcompact segment is expected to grow by over 80 percent from 2010 to 2013. Granted, the B-segment (subcompacts) still doesn’t sell in the numbers that the C- (compacts) and D-segments (midsizers) do, but it stands to reason that US consumers will embrace more “right-sized” vehicles more readily in coming years than they did in the go-go cheap gas 1990s.
By Chris Haak
The midsize sedan segment is the true heart of the US market. Aside from full-size pickups, no segment in the US sells more vehicles than does the one that features such heavy hitters as the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Nissan Altima, Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata, Mazda6, and…Kia Optima.
Wait. Kia Optima? You mean the one that looks like a 2001 Honda Accord?
By Chris Haak
Auto executives are, by nature, an optimistic bunch of people. They’re always on the verge of catching onto the next big trend, of turning around operations, yadda yadda. Therefore, I raised my eyebrows more than a little bit when I saw what Lexus general manager Mark Templin had to say about his brand’s future. It wasn’t optimistic; it was downright melancholy. In an interview with Automotive News, he conceded the luxury-vehicle sales crown for 2011 with seven-plus months remaining in the year. The reason?
He’s blaming the Japanese earthquake, which has done great harm to the auto industry supply chain, but in particular, to Japanese auto manufacturers. Many Japanese OEMs still are not running at full production, including heavyweights Honda and Toyota. Toyota, in fact, said that it was not likely to resume normal production until November, a full eight months after the March earthquake. Lexus is particularly affected, though, because the majority of the brand’s models, with the sole exception of the RX crossover, are built in Japan. In post-tsunami Japan, local auto production is a disadvantage.
By Charles Krome
While there were no doubt plenty of newsworthy vehicle introductions at the recent New York International Auto Show, one of the most important announcements at the event didn’t have anything to do with a specific new car or truck: It was the launch of the latest component of the Hyundai Assurance program, which now guarantees the trade-in value of the automaker’s new vehicles. The move is a key part of Hyundai’s shift away from being a “value brand” that competes primarily on affordability to acting more as a mainstream player that also can attract some premium buyers.
As part of this effort, the trade-in program also effectively replaces the previous Hyundai Assurance campaign, which offered protection to buyers in case of a sudden job loss.
By Chris Haak
Back in January, Honda used the Detroit Auto Show to debut lightly-disguised concept versions of its 2012 Civic coupe and sedan. We covered that here already back then, so there’s no need to rehash all of that. In a nutshell, the new Civic is safer, more comfortable, and more efficient than the car it replaces. It’s also slightly – and I mean slightly – better looking than the 2011 car, with a bit more character and visual interest, and more resolved C-pillar treatment, particularly for the sedan.
The car actually went on sale today, April 20, so it’s a good thing that Honda’s press conference wasn’t bumped to day two of the show. The biggest news that we got today on the Civic was pricing and fuel economy figures, neither of which had been confirmed until now.
By Chris Haak
Having reviewed more than a hundred new cars for this site, and having driven several hundred more over my two decades behind the wheel, it’s kind of hard for a car to make a good impression on me. I’ve just seen too much, for better or worse. So after having spent a week in Hyundai’s all-new 2011 Elantra, I was surprised and delighted about just how good a compact car can be. It’s not perfect, but it’s clearly the best or second-best car in its class.
Hyundai entered the North American market selling cheap cars, then sold cheap cars with a long warranty that looked odd. That morphed into cheap cars with a long warranty that looked bland. And now, Hyundai is offering buyers cheap cars with a long warranty and dynamic, organic – and most importantly, original – designs.
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