Hyundai Evaluating the Creation of a Separate Genesis Brand to Compete with Lexus, May Build a BMW 3-Series Rival

If you were wondering what's next on the Hyundai and Kia Group's agenda of world domination, the answer is the addition of a third brand to the firm's portfolio to compete head on with Japan's Lexus and Infiniti, and possibly even Germany's finest, including BMW and Audi.
The luxury arm would most likely be called Genesis and include the South Korean firm's current rear-wheel drive offerings such as the Genesis Sedan and Coupe, plus the soon-to-be-launched onto the American market, Lexus LS-rivaling Equus. 

The automaker, which saw its U.S. market share increase by an overly impressive 50 per cent in the past two years, would further enhance the range of the Genesis brand with a compact sports saloon in the likes of BMW's best-selling model, the 3-Series, and a crossover utility vehicle to compete with the Lexus RX 350.

The creation of the luxury arm is more than just a thought as John Krafcik, president of Hyundai Motor America, told The Wall Street Journal that the company has two branding scenarios under consideration.
The first and most likely to happen would be for Hyundai to launch the Genesis as a sub-brand and sell the cars in separate parts of its own showrooms. The other is to follow in the footsteps of Lexus and launch the brand into separate dealerships. One third option would be for the company to develop the aforementioned sedan and SUV models but keep the Hyundai branding for the time being. 

"One of the keys to this plan is how well the Equus does. We don't need to make a decision for some time", Mr. Krafcik said on the branding question during an interview with journalists.
While Hyundai remains open to all options, Mr. Krafcik said that he is most concerned about launching a spin-off brand due to the costs related to the creation of a new network of dealers and that the company would need to make an additional $6,000 in revenue per each car sold by the outlets.
There appears to be a lot of enthusiasm among Hyundai dealers who are almost certain about the creation of the Genesis brand. 

"The dealers are excited about the Equus, and it being the lynch pin for this Genesis brand," said Scott Fink, an owner of two Hyundai dealerships in Florida. "We feel like we can do what others have been unable to do. We think we can sell a luxury brand within the house of the mainstream brand."

Source: Wall Street Journal

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Kia Sketches New Picanto City Car Ahead of Geneva Show Debut

We've known for a while now that Kia is preparing a successor to its Picanto city car, but today, the South Korean automaker came out with a pair of official renderings and a short announcement which said the small hatchback will get its world premiere at the Geneva International Motor Show in March 2011 and go on sale in Europe in late Spring.
 
Kia added that the Picanto has been penned by the firm's European design team based in Frankfurt, Germany, under the direction of Chief Design Officer, Peter Schreyer, and that it will bring "confidence, solidity and maturity to the A-segment". No other details were released.

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VIDEO: Bang, Bang, Bang it's the 2012 Hyundai Azera Sedan

Having wow'd us with teaser renderings at first followed shortly after by official real-life photographs, Hyundai continues to build hype around its all-new-2012 Azera before the full reveal by giving the car a promotional role in a South Korean TV drama called "The Fugitive Plan B".
While official information around the new Azera, which will be sold as the Grandeur in its home market, remains scarce, one of our South Korean readers, Jinhwan H. claims that word around local news sites is that the car will be offered locally with a choice of three engines. These include the Sonata's 2.4-liter GDI with 200hp and 184.4lb-ft torque, a 3.0-liter V6 GDI delivering 263hp and 225.7lb-ft torque plus a 3.0-liter LPI running on Liquefied Petroleum Gas with 230hp, 204.7lb-ft torque.


For the North American version there is talk about the 2012 Azera being offered with the 263HP 3.0-liter GDI V6 and a 3.3-liter GDI V6 producing 286HP and 254.6lb-ft torque, with power in both cases being transferred to the front wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission.
We'll update the story as soon as Hyundai releases official intel.

Thanks to Jinhwan.H for the tip!

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2012 Hyundai Azera - Grandeur: First Official Pictures

Shortly after releasing some teaser renderings of the all-new Azera or Grandeur in South Korea and other markets, Hyundai today dropped the first real life photos of its full size sedan that slots between the Sonata and the Genesis. The pictures were escorted by a South Korean-language press release, but aside from a recap of the car's design features, Hyundai did not reveal any other details on the Azera.


From now, all we know is that the car is based on a front wheel-drive platform and is expected to arrive stateside late next year as the 2012MY Azera. We'll have more information as it comes in.

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Hyundai Teases All-New Azera / Grandeur, Slots Between Sonata and Genesis

Hyundai is getting ready to lift the wraps of its fully redesigned Azera large sedan that will slot between the front-wheel drive Sonata and the rear-wheel drive Genesis when it arrives in dealerships. The automaker released the first teaser sketches of the 2012 Azera, which will be badged as the Grandeur in South Korea and other markets. The styling reflects Hyundai's 'fluidic sculpture' design language taking cues from both the smaller Sonata and larger Genesis with a hint of Equus at the rear with the pronounced rear wheel arches.

Here's how Hyundai describes the new Azera / Grandeur's exterior styling:

"The exterior rendering reflects a `Grand Glide' concept, or an image of a bird gracefully gliding across the sky The front of the car has a bold grille, emphasizing the car's premium look. The side part consists of elegant and flowing lines that exude an overall dynamic image. The rear side conveys a futuristic look through stylish LED lamps and the voluminous wide rear bumper."

The South Korean automaker is keeping a tight lid on the mechanical details and the launch date for now, but it shouldn't be long before we get more news in.

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GM Preparing Demo Fleet of 202HP Cruze EVs for South Korea

South Korea is really getting serious about electric vehicles. Following the news last week of a Kia CUV EV to join Hyundai's BlueOn i10, GM has announced it will build a demonstration fleet of battery-powered Chevrolet Cruze sedans from the end of October.

The cars will be deployed in Seoul, with GM planning on testing them in other, unspecified urban markets at a later date. The idea is to test the market needs and consumer acceptance of battery electric vehicles and to gather data on real-world driving patterns and charging behavior.

The demonstration vehicles will be badged both as Daewoos (as the Lacetti Premiere) and Chevrolets (as the Cruze), despite the fact the latter is not sold in South Korea.

The project is a joint venture between GM Daewoo, LG Chem (who make the batteries) and LG Electronics (who make the motor and invertors). GM and LG Chem have been working together since 2008 with this being their second project together after the Chevrolet Volt.

The Cruze EV features an underbody-mounted 31-kwh battery and an electric motor producing 150 kw (equal to 202-horsepower). Tthe demonstration vehicles can sprint from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) in 8.2 seconds and reach a maximum speed of 165 km/h (102.5 mph). Tests by LG Chemical estimate that the driving range could be up to 160 km, with a recharge time of 8 to 10 hours on a standard 220 volt outlet.

GM has yet to reveal how many cars will be built or who exactly will be testing them, though these details will probably come with the launch October.

By Tristan Hankins