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Hyundai, Kia and U of M studying 'highway hypnosis'

Next up on the hot-button list of things that can kill you behind the wheel: "highway hypnosis." That's the zombie-like, autopilot phase you get into on a long highway drive when there isn't much to distract you, like curves or traffic. Digging further into what it is and how to combat it, Hyundai-Kia engineers and the University of Michigan are commencing a study that will measure brainwave activity in order to track the body's slide into highway hypnosis.
We're not sure how much overlap this has with Mercedes-Benz's Attention Assist, which tracks more than 70 in-car parameters to determine when you're not focused on the road anymore. That system is billed as an alarm against fatigue, in our experience it does more than that - if you use your phone while driving, for instance, it will chirp.
They don't know what form a warning system will take yet, but Hyundai-Kia plans to develop a method for warning drivers when they being to zone out. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were more than three thousand deaths and nearly 400,000 injuries due to distracted driving in 2011.

Hyundai testing more variants of top-secret commercial van

The commercial van market in the US is exploding with new products at the moment, with entries from Ford, Ram, Nissan and others. And we are seeing images (again) of Hyundai testing its own van in Europe, as well, though it's not known whether the model will make it to the US. While the company has offered work vehicles overseas in the past, this one appears to be a direct competitor to European vehicles with large bodies and tiny wheels like the Ford Transit and Mercedes-Benz Sprinter.
The latest images show off not just the standard commercial van but also the pickup version, and interior for the first time. According to our spy shooters, Hyundai did not want people to see the inside of the test vehicle, reaching out specifically in an attempt to secure the pictures you see here. It's hard to say what's worth being so secretive about, but that big infotainment screen certainly looks like a nice addition. We still aren't sure whether the Korean company has opted for front- or rear-wheel drive for the model, but the gearshift suggests that it's using a six-speed manual transmission.
The pickup truck version has a cab that looks just like the standard van. Testing this variant suggests that Hyundai is addressing the need for multiple body configurations in the commercial space.

Hyundai sued in Korea over inflated fuel economy claims

Hyundai remains in hot water in its home market after the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport alleged that the country's largest automaker, along with Ssangyong, misstated fuel economy numbers on some of its crossovers. Now, though, the country's consumers are going after Hyundai, with a lawsuit from 1,500 Santa Fe owners.
The suit was filed in Seoul Central District Court by a firm called Yeyul. Its spokesperson, Kim Woong, said the suit was a sign that angry consumers could go after the manufacturer if they're wronged by a company's product.
"It is essential that as many affected consumers as possible take part in this lawsuit to show not just the carmaker but the rest of the companies in Korea that you can get a red card if you mess with your customers," Kim told Bloomberg.