2008 Hyundai Elantra 4 Door Sedan, Very Clean, Low Mileage 24,202 on 2040-cars

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Hyundai, Kia looking to cut costs

Hyundai and Kia are off to roaring starts in the United States this year, underscored by Kia's best sales month ever in May. But globally the situation for the South Korean siblings hasn't been nearly so positive. Recently, they reported their fourth consecutive quarter of decreasing operating profits worldwide, and now they're "making efforts to cut costs," according to a statement in a joint email obtained by Bloomberg. However, the companies aren't detailing where they would make the cuts or how much they want to save. The amount could be significant, though. An unnamed Hyundai senior executive reportedly told a South Korean newspaper that the business might be aiming for up to 30 percent in reductions. According to Bloomberg, Hyundai and Kia are facing falling total sales worldwide. Making the situation worse is that the strong Korean won versus the weaker Japanese yen gives competitors an advantage. The automakers also angered investors enough last year to prompt a stock buyback after paying $10 billion for the land for a future headquarters. The prognosis doesn't look utterly dire, though, and new products are on the way. For example, the Hyundai Santa Fe is being refreshed in South Korea, and the next-gen Elantra debuts at this year's Los Angeles Auto Show. There's also the Creta on the way for foreign markets. Additionally, several models are still awaiting the green light, including a Hyundai Genesis-based luxury crossover, a compact CUV, and the Santa Cruz unibody pickup. Meanwhile, the Kia GT is reportedly close to production, too. Related Video:

Kia design chief Peter Schreyer named Hyundai-Kia President

Automotive News reports Peter Schreyer has been appointed the first non-Korean president of Hyundai-Kia Motor Group. Schreyer is expected to retain his role as the chief designer for Kia, while also taking on new, high-level executive duties. He is now one of three presidents at the automaker.
The designer made a name for himself at Volkswagen, where he penned the 1998 New Beetle and lent his eye to the Audi TT. In 2006, Schreyer moved to Kia, where he quickly revised the brand's styling from bland, forgettable lines to bold, "tiger nose" creations. Analysts attribute much of the brand's recent sales success to Schreyer's influence.
Kia is expected to move 2.75 million units worldwide next year, while sister company Hyundai will likely beat its 2012 sales forecast of 4.29 million units, according to CFO Lee Won Hee.

Amazon Prime will now bring you a Hyundai, but you can't keep it

We already rely on Amazon Prime to bring us necessities like food, clothing, and five-pound Hershey bars, so why not entire cars? Hyundai is going to try that, although only to quickly bring you a car to test-drive. There's no one-click ordering for Elantras yet. The program, called "Prime Now. Drive Now", is an extension of the Prime Now fast delivery service that brings certain items to people in select areas in under two hours. It's available this weekend and next, only to people in Los Angeles and Orange County. Prime members can hop online and schedule a time between 9 am and 7 pm, Saturday or Sunday, and designate a preferred location for the test drive. After that, a "trained expert" will be sent with a 2017 Hyundai Elantra for the potential customer to try out for 45 to 60 minutes. If after that they want to purchase an Elantra, the expert can then direct them to a local Hyundai dealer to complete the transaction. This is an interesting approach to reaching consumers and could have benefits for them. People who are too busy to visit a dealer for a test drive can schedule a more convenient time and place to try the car. For people who get stressed out with the dealer experience and the pressure to purchase a car (which is, like, everyone) this could also be a more comfortable way to look at one. It's also a clever way for Hyundai to sort of circumvent its dealers while still letting them handle the final sale, a sort of indirect direct-sales solution. On the flip side, this program means consumers may only try the car that arrives at their door, and there's a decent chance that it will be a high trim with options and features that they might not want or be able to afford. It might still require some shopping around at the dealer to see what the different trim levels and options are like. Though only a limited trial for now, it will be interesting to see if Hyundai continues the program, and having more test-drive options can't hurt. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2017 Hyundai Elantra View 51 Photos Image Credit: Hyundai Hyundai Car Buying Sedan Amazon amazon prime