Hyundai Electric Vehicles
Initially, Hyundai was electric vehicle shy and its strategy, Hyundai Bluedrive focused on improving fuel efficiency and driving the expansion of the green vehicle market through a focus on Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles. In March 2017 Hyundai that admitted electric vehicles are an imperative. The South Korean automaker, Hyundai Motors (005380.KS) strategy has been focused on Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles until investor pressure forced the company to change in 2016. The company, which also owns KIA Motors (000270.KS), announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show in 2016 that it will change course to electric vehicles. Hyundai-Kia’s head of its green car efforts, situated in the city of Yongin, Mr. Lee Ki-Sang, shed light on the strategy change to electric vehicles during an interview ahead of the 2017 Seoul Motor Show. In Los Angeles, the company said that it planned to have 14 new alternative vehicles in the US by 2020. The planned product mix include’s four plug-in hybrids, four electric and one hydrogen fuel cell model. Today Mr. Lee shed some more light on the company’s plans, indicating that the first fully electric vehicle planned for next year would be a small SUV. According to Mr. Lee, the SUV would have a range of 185 miles (300km). Although the company is developing its own dedicated platform, it can’t say when it would be ready. The platform is modeled after that of Tesla, with the batteries in the floor, allowing for more battery capacity and cabin space. It is clear from the announcement that the company is aggressively trying to catch up on lost ground. The Korean automaker has been criticized by investors and analysts for not acting on electric vehicles sooner, pressuring the company to change its strategy. Investment analyst expects the company to lose money initially on the shift to EV’s, but that should they not act they would be left behind. An analyst at Hi Investment Securities went further to say that they must target long-range electric vehicles between 190 miles and 400 miles to be relevant at all. Hyundai now expects the EV market to be around 10% of the global fleet by 2025, at which point Fuel Cell EV’s will take off. Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis also announced today that it would introduce a PHEV by 2019 and BEV by 2021. The Hyundai-Kia alliance is also planning Chinese versions of its electric vehicles, and for the purpose, it is in the process of sourcing batteries from China, since Korean suppliers LG-Chem and Samsung are excluded from subsidies in China from 2016. The company is speaking to the likes of Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) and others for battery supply. The Hyundai and BAIC JV, Beijing Hyundai, is a 50/50 JV founded in terms of Chinese law. The first EV from the stable is a 4th generation electrified Elantra Yuedong now listed as the Beijing Hyundai Elantra GS. |
Hyundai Electric Car Strategy in the news
Week 3 2020 Hyundai & KIA invest in British start-up to develop commercial EVs
Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors Corporation furthered its clean mobility strategy through strategic investment of €100 million in a new partnership with the British autonomous EV startup, Arrival.
KIA and Hyundai expect to enter the market for small and medium-sized commercial EVs to supply logistics, ride-hailing, and shuttle service companies by using Arrival's modular electric platform. The strategic investment is in the form of a partnership where Hyundai contributes 80% and KIA 20% of the total investment.
Albert Biermann, President and Head of Research and Development Division for Hyundai Motor Group, said: “Through the joint development of electric commercial vehicles with Arrival, we will be able to gain a competitive advantage and progressively establish our leadership in the global eco-friendly vehicle market, with Europe at the forefront.”
Arrival’s CEO and founder, the Russian entrepreneur Denis Sverdlov added: “Arrival has created a game changing product category - Generation 2.0 electric vehicles. Hyundai and Kia have been making amazing vehicles with uncompromising quality and share our vision for an electric mobility future. Our Strategic Partnership with Hyundai and Kia means we will scale Generation 2 electric vehicles globally and importantly - in the very near future.”
2018 Week 10 Hyundai Sante FE PHEV Announced
Hyundai unveiled the next generation Sante Fe and announced that it will be available with Hybrid and Plug-In Hybrid drivetrain.
On the technical front, Hyundai showcased its Intelligent Personal Cockpit, applying multiple cutting-edge technologies such as IoT and voice recognition (AI). The cockpit will offer an entire suite of new voice-control capabilities including Car-to-Home IoT capability that extends the reach of the driver’s voice into the home environment. By integrating the in-car technology into the customer’s home, it is possible to control domestic appliances with voice commands from car to home. In addition, the Intelligent Personal Cockpit includes Hyundai Wellness Care, which detects the driver’s stress level with sensors in the seat and the steering wheel. The system starts playing soothing music and dims the cabin light when stressful situations occur.
2018 Week 6 Hyundai Kona Teased
Hyundai
Motor has released a teaser image of its first fully-electric
subcompact SUV ahead of the official unveiling on February 27 at the
Geneva Auto Show. Hyundai Motor will release the Kona EV SUV in the
summer of 2018 becoming the first automotive brand across Europe to make
an all-electric subcompact SUV available to everyone. The All-New Kona
Electric will feature two different powertrain versions offering
customers one of the most powerful electric engines on the market with a
class-leading range of almost 470km/293miles (internal target under
WLTP regulations). The 2018 Hyundai Kona will include a wide range of
convenience and connectivity features as well as active safety and
driving assistance technologies.
2018 Week 5 Hyundai showcases autonomous Fuel Cell EV
Hyundai showcased the world’s first autonomous fuel cell EV which will
be used during the Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea. A fleet of
five vehicles equipped with Level 4 self-driving technology completed
the 180km (113 miles) at the allowable speed of 110km/h from Seoul to
the Olympic village at Pyeongchang. The fleet consisted of three NEXO
FCEVs and two Genesis 80 autonomous cars. Hyundai is set to
commercialize Level 4 self-driving cars in smart cities as early as
2021. Hyundai’s autonomous technology allowed the vehicles to navigate
through toll gates by accurately calculating the toll gate’s width and
position, and precisely pinpoint the vehicle’s position on a map by
using external sensors fitted for situations when the GPS signal was
interrupted, such as going through long underground tunnels.
Hyundai’s self-driving technology includes enhanced connectivity made
possible by the 5G network provided by mobile service provider, KT Corp.
The infotainment system allows passengers to use functions such as Home
Connect, Assistant Chat and Wellness Care. Home Connect is a
car-to-home technology which allows passengers to access and control IoT
devices in a smart home. Hyundai will phase in home-to-car technology
from this year and car-to-home from 2019 into other Hyundai models.
Assisted Chat is a Chat Bot, and the Wellness Care monitors passengers
health information and connects to a health consultant through
video-call.
2018 Week 2 Hyundai battery price predictions
In December 2017 Hyundai Senior VP Lee King was quoted by Reuters that the Group sees the end of the sharp drop in prices of lithium batteries by 2020 after which it expects prices to flatten off. According to Reuters Mr. King said at the time: “Not a single ingredient is going in a positive direction in terms of pricing, so far battery prices have been declining at a rapid pace, but the pace will moderate significantly or maintain the status quo by 2020.”
This week at the CES 2018 Mr. King was quoted by Reuters making the same remarks at the launch of its new Nexo FCEV. Although Hyundai and its sister company KIA acknowledges the need to go green, they see a much smaller role for electric vehicles pushing hydrogen-based vehicles along with Japanese carmaker Toyota and FIAT Chrysler. Hyundai KIA is launching EVs on its new platform this year and plans to roll out EVs powered by solid-state batteries from 2020.
2018 Week 1 Hyundai to unveil next gen FCEV at CES 2018
The Consumer Electronics Show, which in recent years have been used by carmakers to present their latest technology as the lines between the two sectors fades. Some autonomous and electric cars are expected to be unveiled at this years CES in Las Vegas. The 2018 CES opens today, Sunday the 7th of January, and runs to Friday the 12th of January.
Hyundai will name and unveil its next-generation hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicle equipped with new Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) technologies.
2018 Week 1 Hyundai and Aurora enters into self-driving partnership
Aurora, an autonomous vehicle technology company founded by ex-Tesla executive responsible for the Autopilot program, Sterling Anderson, announced two strategic partnerships this week. Aurora entered into agreements with VW and Hyundai.
Hyundai and Aurora aim to develop Level 4 autonomous cars by 2021. The cars will be custom made by Hyundai for use in smart cities and will use Hyundai’s new-generation fuel-cell vehicle shown above as the first test model for the joint project.
2017 Week 43 Hyundai Group unveils powertrain strategy
Hyundai Kia unveiled its next-generation powertrain strategy at its International Powertrain Conference in South Korea this week which will help the automaker to reach its long-term emissions goal. Hyundai showcased four engines and two transmission systems at the two-day event attended by 1,200 academics and engineers. By 2022, Hyundai Motor Group aims to develop an all-new Smart Stream powertrain line-up for ICE vehicles composing of 10 gasoline engines, six diesel engines, and six transmissions. Hyundai believes that combustion engines will be the dominant engine type up to 2025 after which PHEV and BEV powertrains start receiving wider acceptance. The automaker will also develop Fuel Cell EVs, Plug-in Hybrid EVs, and pure electric vehicles to respond to changing market needs.
In a strategy that favors combustion vehicles and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEV), Hyundai’s FCEV will be developed to have an 800km (500 miles) range and 163 horsepower output as it targets the largest hydrogen storage density of any fuel cell vehicle available.
2017 Week 34 Hyundai to deploy self-driving cars at 2018 Winter Olympics
Hyundai will
deploy an autonomous fleet for the 2018 Winter Olympics which is held
in the city of Pyeongchang, South Korea during February 2018. The
self-driving software will utilize Hyundai’s subsidiary, MnSOFT’s
ultra-high-precision HD Map, with a margin of error of only 10cm as
opposed to the 30 meters of previous maps. According to South Korean IT
publication, etnews,
Hyundai will supply a fleet of self-driving fuel-cell based SUVs and
buses to ferry people over the 126km between the capital and the event
venue.
2017 Week 34 Hyundai testing V2X tech systems
According to the Korea Post Hyundai and it’s sister company Kia is testing V2X technology
in partnership with the City if Hwaseong on a 14km section of road to
test V2X (Vehicle to everything) systems. V2X technology is where the
vehicle communicates on a real-time basis with the road on which it
travels and includes traffic signals, other road users such a
pedestrians and other vehicles.
2017 Week 25 Hyundai produce new FCEV
2017 Week 24 New EVs announced
Hyundai revealed
its latest EV, an electric version of the Hyundai Kona SUV. The car is
expected to reach the market late 2018 and will be unveiled at the
Frankfort Auto Show in September 2017. Although no specifics have been
revealed the Kona is expected to have a range of 217 miles with a 50kWh
battery and will be priced below $40,000. In related news, the Korean
company announced that it would increase production of the popular Hyundai Ioniq with 50%.
2017 Week 20 Hyundai to enter EV bus market
Hyundai
announced that it would develop an electric bus for the local market
next year. The bus is expected to be equipped with a huge 256kWh
battery.
2017 Week 13 Hyundai Sheds more light on EV strategy
Hyundai admits electric vehicles are an imperative. During the Los Angeles Auto Show in 2016, the company said that it planned to have 14 new alternative vehicles in the US by 2020. The planned product mix include’s four plug-in hybrids, four electric and one hydrogen fuel cell model. Thursday Mr. Lee shed some more light on the company’s plans, indicating that the first fully electric vehicle planned for next year would be a small SUV. According to Mr. Lee, the SUV would have a range of 185 miles (300km). Although the company is developing its own dedicated platform, it can’t say when it would be ready. The platform is modeled after that of Tesla, with the batteries in the floor, allowing for more battery capacity and cabin space. It is clear from the announcement that the company is aggressively trying to catch up on lost ground.
Hyundai now expects the EV market to be around 10% of the global fleet by 2025, at which point Fuel Cell EV’s will take off. Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis also announced today that it would introduce a PHEV by 2019 and BEV by 2021.
2016 Week 46 Los Angeles Auto Show 2016- Hyundai EV Strategy
The Los Angeles Auto Show ended up being quite exciting for the Electric
Vehicle segment, boding well for the market, with various automakers
unveiling new models. VW unveiled its Golf full-electric model and announced that it would be entering the market in 2017. The e-Golf achieves a range of 124 miles from its 35.8kWh battery. Mazda, who has been auspicious in its absence from the EV market announced that it would have various electric models by 2019. Hyundai announced that its changing direction away from hydrogen fuel cells
to battery electric vehicles with 14 new alternative vehicles by in the
US by 2020. The product mix will include four plug-in hybrids, four
electric and one hydrogen fuel cell model. Jaguar unveiled its
much-anticipated full electric model, the I-Pace. The automaker’s first
attempt is expected by 2018 and will have NEDC range of over 250 miles
from a 90kWh battery and accelerate from 0 – 60mph in 4 seconds.
2016 Week 45 Los Angeles Auto Show 2016
Although not as electric vehicle focused as the Paris Auto Show earlier the year, the Los Angeles Auto Show
to be held this coming week promises to provide further insight in how
automakers gear up for their respective electric vehicle strategies.
Vehicle Manufacturers to keep an eye out for is Hyundai, Land Rover, GM, Tesla, BMW, Mercedes, and Nissan.
Market commentators will also be looking at how some manufacturers
utilize the low fuel cost environment to bring more SUV’s and crossovers
to the market. The consumer’s appetite for these vehicles in the low
fuel environment has long been the Achilles heel for the addition of EV
vehicles, adding to an ever-increasing glut of sedan vehicles.
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