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The Hyundai Solus is a 500-hp Genesis Coupe for SEMA

Hyundai is working on a SEMA Show car again with its old pals at ARK Performance. This time the project is a wide-body Genesis Coupe dubbed the Solus, a performance concept theoretically aimed at the BMW M4 and Lexus RC F. The white paint is subtle for SEMA, but ARK Performance built new parts for practically the entire body. The bumper gets larger intakes and a carbon-fiber splitter, the fenders are widened at both ends, and a new hood fits the revised look well. Side skirts bring the styling treatment along the profile to highlight the more aggressive rear. The styling should mesh nicely with the 700-horsepower Tucson that's also coming to the event. ARK Performance didn't neglect the engine, stroking the V6 from 3.8 up to a full 4.0 liters and then adding a Rotrex supercharger. The result is a claimed 500 hp running to the rear through a six-speed manual. The company also installs its own coilover kit to help handling. This isn't the first Genesis Coupe Ark has tuned. The company has produced multiple tuned versions of the model for SEMA going back to 2010. Last year, it switched gears slightly with a 550-hp supercharged Genesis sedan called the AR550. Seventh Consecutive SEMA Vehicle Blends Premium and Performance Sponsorship Provided by Hyundai Car Care Express and Quaker State FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Sept. 30, 2015 – Leveraging its long-standing relationship with Hyundai Motor America, ARK Performance has released details on its race-inspired Solus Genesis Coupe, blending performance and luxury to take on vehicles like the BMW M4 and Lexus RC F. The vehicle will be revealed at Hyundai's SEMA press conference on November 3 at 11:30 a.m. PT. For the tuner's seventh consecutive vehicle built for SEMA, ARK added performance and luxury in tandem, creating a premium coupe that can go toe-to-toe with top rivals from around the world. Building on the success of last year's AR550 Genesis Sedan, the vehicle's design focuses on creating a wider visual look to give a more powerful stance using ARK's own "Solus" wide body kit. The interior also has been given a complete makeover with a redesigned dashboard, race-bred steering wheel and gauges, with ample carbon fiber. The Solus Genesis Coupe is sponsored by Quaker State and Hyundai Assurance Car Care Express, with more than 300 service centers nationally. Car Care Express provides customers with quick oil changes, tire rotation and other basic services in less than an hour.

Hyundai Genesis Coupe spotted with rumors of a V8 underhood

Our spy shooters have captured a Hyundai Genesis Coupe mule testing in Sweden. This is merely the current body cut-and-pasted to fit new internals, so don't be disappointed by its looks; we're looking forward to inspiration from the HCD-9 and perhaps grand touring inclinations on the production car whenever it appears. The photographers said they noticed the hood's been modified, perhaps to clear the 5.0-liter V8 from the Genesis sedan. That engine would be part of the plan to push further upscale said to be planned for the Genesis Coupe, along with the fender arch cutouts on this mule that push the wheels to the corners for a longer wheelbase that will make more room for passengers. Rumor has been that the next car will do a much better job of swallowing four adults. The company's HTRAC all-wheel drive is expected to be an option, Hyundai having said five years ago that the feature is being engineered into the Genesis family platform. A reveal probably won't come until sometime in 2016.

Foreign automakers pay from $38 to $65 per hour to non-union workers

As leaders for the United Auto Workers gather in Detroit for their Special Convention on Collective Bargaining to work out the negotiating stance for this year's new labor agreements with the Detroit 3 automakers, what they most want to do is figure out how to eliminate the two-tier wage scale. However, the lower Tier 2 wage has allowed the domestic automakers to reduce their labor costs, hire more workers, and compete better with their import competition. As it stands, per-hour labor rates including benefits are $58 at General Motors, $57 at Ford, and $48 at Fiat-Chrysler – a reflection of FCA's much greater number of Tier 2 workers. The Center for Automotive Research released a study of labor rates (including benefits) that put numbers to what the imports pay: Mercedes-Benz pays the most, at an average of $65 per hour, Volkswagen pays the least, at $38 per hour, and BMW is just a hair above that at $39 per hour. Among the Detroit competitors, Honda workers earn an average of $49 per hour, at Toyota it's $48 per hour, Nissan is $42 per hour, and Hyundai-Kia pays $41 per hour. The lower import wages are aided by their greater use of temporary workers compared to the domestics. Automotive News says the ten-dollar gap between those foreign camakers and the domestics turns out to about an extra $250 per car in labor, which adds up quickly when you're pumping out many millions of cars. That $250-per-car number is one that, come negotiating time, the Detroit 3 will want to reduce, as the UAW is trying to raise both Tier 1 and Tier 2 wages. Another wrinkle is that the domestic carmakers are considering the wide adoption of a third wage level lower than Tier 2. Some workers who do minor tasks like assembling parts trays kits and battery packs already make less than Tier 2, but the UAW will be quite wary about cementing yet another wage scale at the bottom of the system while it's trying to fight a bigger battle at the top. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req., BloombergImage Credit: AP Photo/Erik Schelzig Earnings/Financials UAW/Unions BMW Chevrolet Fiat Ford GM Honda Hyundai Kia Mercedes-Benz Nissan Toyota Volkswagen labor wages collective bargaining labor costs