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Hyundai will launch pickup, more SUVs to reverse U.S. sales slide

By Paul Lienert and Hyunjoo Jin DETROIT/SEOUL — Hyundai plans to launch a pickup truck in the United States as part of a broader plan to catch up with a shift away from sedans in one of the Korean automaker's most important markets, a senior company executive said. Michael J. O'Brien, vice president of corporate and product planning at Hyundai's U.S. unit, told Reuters that Hyundai's top management has given the green light for development of a pickup truck similar to a show vehicle called the Santa Cruz that U.S. Hyundai executives unveiled in 2015. Hyundai currently does not offer a pickup truck in the United States. Hyundai also plans to launch a small SUV called the Kona in the United States later this year. People familiar with the automaker's plans said separately that Hyundai plans to launch three other new or refreshed SUVs by 2020. So-called crossovers — sport utilities built on chassis similar to sedans — now account for about 30 percent of total light vehicle sales in the United States. Consumers in China, the world's largest auto market, are also substituting car-based SUVs for sedans. People familiar with Hyundai's plans said the company plans to roll out a new version of its Santa Fe Sport midsize SUV next year, followed by an all-new seven-passenger crossover to replace a current three-row Santa Fe in early 2019 in the United Sates. A redesigned Tucson SUV is expected in 2020, people familiar with Hyundai's plans said. Hyundai's U.S. dealers have pushed the company to invest more aggressively in SUVs and trucks as demand for sedans such as the midsize Sonata and the smaller Elantra has waned, and as Hyundai has announced a shift to electric vehicles. "We are optimistic about the future," Scott Fink, chief executive of Hyundai of New Port Richey, Fla., which is Hyundai's biggest U.S. dealer, said. "But we are disappointed that we don't have the products today." Hyundai's U.S. sales are down nearly 11 percent this year through July 31, worse than the overall 2.9-percent decline in U.S. car and light truck sales. Sales of the Sonata, once a pillar of Hyundai's U.S. franchise, have fallen 30 percent through the first seven months of 2017. In contrast, sales of Hyundai's current SUV lineup are up 11 percent for the first seven months of this year. "Our glasses are fairly clean," O'Brien said.

Rockstar Performance creates off-road Hyundai Tucson for SEMA

Hyundai is rapidly filling its space for this year's SEMA Show on November 3 in Las Vegas, NV, but the latest addition to the growing list of debuts takes a slightly different approach. Rather than going for all-out power like the rest, Rockstar Performance Garage is bringing a tuned 2016 Tucson that's custom modified to head off-road. To handle getting through mud and over rocks, Rockstar Performance gives the Tucson a major suspension upgrade. Some 2.5-inch, adjustable coilovers are fitted at the front, and the rear is equipped with 2.5-inch shocks with remote reservoirs and progressive springs. To get the power to the dirt, 32-inch Mickey Thompson tires are mounted on some 17-inch wheels. "The focus behind this build was to create an off-roader that nobody expected," says Nic Ashby, owner and general partner of Rockstar Performance Garage. The tuners give the Tucson a meaner look thanks to a black paint job that's trimmed with yellow and silver accents, and the roof features a custom rack with an LED light bar. Inside, the stereo gets an upgrade with improved speakers and a 10-inch subwoofer. The powerplant isn't left alone, either, and Rockstar Performance fits new parts for the turbo piping and intercooler, plus a Magnaflow exhaust, to get the most from the 1.6-liter engine. Rockstar Performance's work should be quite a contrast next to the lowered, blue, 700-horsepower Tucson from Bisimoto Engineering also coming to SEMA. Related Video: ROCKSTAR PERFORMANCE GARAGE TURNS 2016 TUCSON INTO A TRUE OFF-ROADER FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Oct. 12, 2015 – Rockstar Performance Garage (RPG), the off-road specialists, have revealed details on its 2016 Tucson SEMA build. This is the first year that Hyundai has teamed up with the off-road gurus at RPG, injecting off-road lifeblood into Hyundai's popular CUV. The car will be revealed at Hyundai's SEMA press conference on November 3 at 11:30 a.m. PT, in Las Vegas. The bumper-to-bumper overhaul started with the most important piece of any serious off-roader: the suspension. The Tucson now sits six inches over stock height, riding on massive, 32-in. MTZ P3 tires from Mickey Thompson, and a fully-custom, adjustable shocks and struts system from King Shocks. The vehicle's wheel wells were reconstructed to create space for the new setup, now able to fit the massive suspension and tire combination.

Hyundai poaches BMW M engineering chief to lead new performance division

The Hyundai Motor Group may be getting more serious about its performance credentials, but in order to realize its goal of making more serious performance machinery, it's going to need the expertise to get there. Fortunately that's just what it's acquired in hiring Albert Biermann. The former chief engineer at BMW M GmbH, Biermann has been working for the Bavarian automaker for over three decades now, and since his appointment as Vice President of Engineering at the M division, was most recently responsible for developing the latest M3, M4 and M6 – not to mention bridging the gap between BMW's standard models and its M lineup with the M Performance range. But now the 57-year-old German has been named the Korean group's new head of Vehicle Test & High Performance Development. In his new job, Biermann will be based out of Hyundai's R&D center in Namyang, South Korea, and will be tasked with "the development of new high performance Hyundai and Kia models" while also working to improve the two brands' ride, handling, safety, reliability and NVH reductions. The appointment makes Biermann the second high-ranking German executive the Korean automaker brought on board, after chief designer Peter Schreyer. Although Hyundai recently shut down its US racing program with Rhys Millen Racing, it has embarked on an ambitious assault of the World Rally Championship, and recently opened a test center at the Nurburgring with an eye towards launching a new N performance line that sounds like it'll be right up Biermann's alley. News Source: Hyundai Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Hyundai Kia Performance Hyundai N albert biermann