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Hyundai and Turin IED collaborate on Kite buggy concept for Geneva

The last time Hyundai's European Design Center collaborated with Turin, Italy's Instituto Europeo di Design (IED), we got the PassoCorto concept in 2014. That four-year-old vision made an appearance in recent news feeds, as a potential harbinger of a mid-engine Hyundai sports car when the Theta II engine arrives. The Korean carmaker is at it again with IED, and this time the two have worked up a doorles, roofless, windowless buggy referred to as the Kite concept, planned for display at next month's Geneva Motor Show. The full-sized scale model measures 12.2 feet long, 7.3 feet wide, and 4.7 feet high — that's about four inches shorter and one inch taller than a Mini Cooper, but 20 inches wider. Being a model, the Kite won't be fitted with any powertrain, but the students behind the project envision one brushless electric motor on propulsion duty. This is the first of IED's previous 14 automaker collaborations to have an interior, so the 15 students from nine countries who worked on the project did their homework, tapping Gruppo Sila for the shift-by-wire gearbox, and Sabelt for the seat and seatbelts. Guests to the stand will be able to experience the Kite concept through virtual reality, while the whiz-bang gearbox gets shown in a separate, dedicated area. The design school's annual project serves as the thesis project for the Masters in Transportation Design program. Last year's offering, the Scilla concept prepared with Pininfarina, was a 180-degree departure from the Kite, but the students spent time off-road recently with their McLaren crossover concepts of 2010. If you're smitten with this year's product, you won't be able to buy it, but Hyundai does sell an actual kite. Related Video: Featured Gallery Hyundai Kite Concept News Source: Car Body Design via Carscoops Design/Style Green Geneva Motor Show Hyundai Concept Cars Electric Off-Road Vehicles 2018 Geneva Motor Show

2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, PHEV gets conservative new look, more range

The plug-in hybrid middle ground between the 2015 Toyota Prius Plug-In (11 miles of EV range) and the 2016 Chevrolet Volt (50 miles) has long been the Ford domain. The Blue Oval has two plug-in hybrids with 20 miles of all-electric range, its 2015 Fusion and C-Max Energi Plug-in Hybrids. Entering this fray later this year will be the 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid, which will arrive with 22 miles of EV range and 93 MPGe. Hyundai made that announcement at the Detroit Auto Show this morning, saying that 22 miles is "farther than any other midsize PHEV sedan." Those zero-emission miles will come from a 9.8-kWh lithium polymer battery and a 50-kW electric motor. Once the pack runs out, Hyundai expects the PHEV to get 40 mpg combined (as well as 38 mpg city and 43 mpg highway) thanks to the gas-powered heart of the powertrain: a 154-horsepower, 2.0-liter Nu GDI four-cylinder engine that puts out 140 pound-feet of torque. When combined with the motor, the total system output is 202 horsepower. Hyundai is also showing off a non-plug Sonata Hybrid, which is expected to get a 10-percent fuel economy boost. The current version gets 38 mpg, combined, so that hints at around 42 mpg on the sticker when the car arrives in dealerships. The plugless model has to make due with a 51-hp, 38-kW electric motor that offers 151 pound-feet of torque and a net power rating of 193 horsepower. The two new Sonata Hybrid models have their own, more aerodynamic front and rear fascias as well as "purposefully unique wheels" that help drop the drag coefficient to just 0.24. The PHEV has a unique grille and a charge port on the front driver's side. Both models will arrive in dealerships later this year. Featured Gallery 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug In Hybrid View 12 Photos Green Detroit Auto Show Hyundai Fuel Efficiency Hybrid Sedan

Auto execs surveyed say VW, BMW most likely to grow

A new survey of top global automotive executives indicates both Volkswagen and BMW are the most likely to grow their market share over the next five years.
Tax advisory firm KPMG LLP has released its 14th annual Global Automotive Executive Survey, which includes responses from over 200 executives. A total of 81 percent of respondents said they expect to see Volkswagen make gains, compared to 70 percent last year. BMW, meanwhile, saw 70 percent of those surveyed say they believe the company will increase its market share. That's a jump of 7 percentage points over last year. This is the first time in the history of the survey that BMW has claimed the second-place spot.
Meanwhile, Hyundai has seen its perceived market share potential slacken for the third year in a row. Around 61 percent of those surveyed predicted gains for Hyundai, down from 63 in 2012. Toyota also has a surprising year, but for just the opposite reason. While the manufacturer had slipped in ranking since 2011, it enjoyed the largest increase of any company in the 2013 survey, jumping to 68 percent from 44 percent last year.