2014 Hyundai Elantra Limited on 2040-cars

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NHTSA closes investigations into Ford Taurus, Hyundai Santa Fe

Ford and Hyundai are out from under the scrutinizing eyes of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after the government agency said it was closing investigations against both automakers over vehicle safety concerns.
Ford was being investigated for reported damaged speed control cables on Ford Taurus (shown above) and Mercury Sable models, both built between 2000 and 2003. Vehicles with the company's Duratec engines allegedly failed to allow owners to brake as expected. Owners lodged 100 complaints and were involved in five accidents, according to NHTSA records. The American automaker responded to the reports, and on June 21 of this year, said that it would inspect and repair all affected vehicles, regardless of the mileage.
Hyundai was under investigation for a reported loose fastener on the steering shaft of its 2011 Santa Fe (shown in the gallery below). After NHTSA launched its inquiry, the Korean automaker responded with its own investigation that yielded four affected vehicles. Following the inspection of 680 vehicles at its assembly plant, Hyundai said the issue was due to employee error and that no further defects have been found.

Hyundai Motor Group reveals the E-GMP modular electric platform

Just as Volkswagen has the MEB platform for its ID. line of electric cars, Hyundai Motor Group is launching a modular architecture of its own. It's called E-GMP for "electric-global modular platform," and the motor and battery powertrain is called PE for "power electric." These components will underpin models from Hyundai, Kia, Genesis and the new Ioniq brand. The first to launch with it will be the Ioniq 5. One of the interesting aspects of this platform is that it will be designed with rear-wheel drive in mind. Like VW's and Tesla's EVs, the basic layout will feature a rear-mounted motor powering those back wheels, and the battery pack fits in the floor between the wheels. All-wheel drive will be available on some of these models with the addition of a second, front-mounted motor. That front motor will be able to mechanically disconnect from the front drive axles when not needed, allowing for less mechanical drag and more efficient driving. Hyundai is promising impressive performance from the E-GMP and its batteries and motors. The company claims that a car built on the platform could be capable of 0-62 mph sprints of 3.5 seconds with a top speed of about 162 mph. This will vary depending on motors, and Hyundai Motor Group revealed that there are three outputs of motor in development. Maximum range is expected to be 311 miles on the WLTP cycle. Hyundai didn't give exact power outputs or battery capacity in kWh, though. The battery pack is made up of standardized modules that can be added or subtracted depending on the needs of the vehicle, and the individual cells are pouch-type, similar to what GM is using in its Ultium batteries. The E-GMP cars will also support fast charging up to 800V and 350kW, so an 80% charge from empty could happen in just 18 minutes. Two-way charging will also be supported, so your electric Hyundai or Kia could provide up to 3.5kW of power to various appliances or even to another EV. Hyundai says you could run a "midsize" air conditioner and a 55-inch TV for up to 24 hours with an E-GMP car. Hyundai 45 View 14 Photos We won't have to wait long to see the first car based on this platform. The Ioniq 5, which will take design inspiration from the Hyundai 45 concept, will launch next year. The Ioniq 6, based on the Hyundai Prophecy concept, will come in 2022 and the Ioniq 7 in 2024. The first Kia model will be a crossover revealed next year, and it will have a performance variant.

2019 Hyundai Nexo Quick Spin Review | A better hydrogen fuel cell crossover

PYEONGCHANG, S. Korea — When we travelled to South Korea to test out the new Hyundai Santa Fe, we also got a chance behind the wheel of the new hydrogen-powered Nexo fuel-cell SUV. Hyundai unveiled the Nexo at CES in January as a replacement for the Tucson Fuel Cell, which logged miles and gathered data in 18 countries over the course of its generation. The Nexo is an improvement: It's more efficient, packed with smarter driver assistance technologies and, in our opinion, is more attractive. With a clean an uncluttered exterior, it has a familiar crossover profile, but the front end, is a little more unique with a large grille and uber-thin lighting tucked high under the front of the hood. The rear end offers a lot of blank sheet metal, which looks fetching in white. Aerodynamic vents behind the rear quarter windows open up at the back of the car beneath a sporty-looking spoiler. But it's the clean, sustainable future that its hydrogen fuel may provide that's most important. Which is not to diminish the benefits battery electric cars offer in the interim — and likely for the foreseeable future — but renewable electricity is intermittent. So how does one store massive amounts of clean electricity for long periods to use when it's not readily available? Hydrogen electrolysis – using an electric current to decompose regular water into oxygen and hydrogen. The beautiful thing about the abundant element is that it can be converted back to electricity, either on a grid-scale, or in the fuel cell of a passenger vehicle. (The less beautiful thing is how to store hydrogen safely, but that's another story.) Our first stint inside the vehicle took place in the back seat, where we had plenty of legroom and clean surroundings. The interior was white and grey with matte silver metallic trim. The plastics in the Nexo aren't particularly soft, but somehow Hyundai makes them look premium with fine grains and patterns — one of the tricks Hyundai uses to make its affordable cars feel like higher-end automobiles. We were comfortable back there, especially with rear seat heaters to ward of the winter chill in the Korean mountains as we drove past the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang. When it came our turn to get behind the wheel, we felt right at home in the comfortable driver's seat. The steering wheel was attractive in its two-tone leather, and smooth to the touch.