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Hyundai, Kia expanding plug-in vehicle line-up in Korea

Hyundai is shedding a bit of light on its electric vehicle plans. About time, too, since the company has spend a long period being quite vague about plugging in while touting its hydrogen plans. The Hyundai and Kia brands will both release their first plug-in hybrid vehicles next year in Korea; an all-electric version of the Kia Soul will roll out in May of this year and a mid-size electric vehicle will be launched as early as next year. Test versions of the Hyundai i10 electric vehicle have been on Korean roads since first being used at the G20 summit in Seoul in 2010. There have been hints about an electrified Hyundai coming to America, and at the Washington Auto Show last week, Michael O'Brien, vice president of corporate and product planning for Hyundai Motor America told AutoblogGreen that a new EV will be coming to the US market sometime within the next three years. A Hyundai executive told Korean national daily The Chosunilbo that the company will be significantly increasing its investment in hybrids and EVs to roll out a few eco-friendly models starting in 2015. It's hard to say which of these might come to the US market – a new LF Sonata will be coming out in both a regular gasoline and hybrid system in Korea; the US already has the Sonata Hybrid for sale. As for plug-in hybrids, Hyundai said that there will be both Sonata and Kia K5 (Optima) models coming out next year. These will also be the first-ever plug-in hybrids in the Korean market. Featured Gallery 2012 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid View 13 Photos News Source: The Chosunilbo Green Hyundai Kia Electric Hybrid Hydrogen Cars PHEV

Did a US automaker blow the whistle on Hyundai, Kia fuel economy issue?

In all of the most hotly contested mainstream segments of the motoring universe, the difference of one mile per gallon averaged on a widow sticker can mean the difference between a sale and a walk-off - to say nothing of two or three mpg. So, when Hyundai and Kia were forced to reveal that many of their 40-mpg ratings were actually 38s and 37s, well, it made for big news.
It also, conceivably, made for a competitive disadvantage immediately, when the Korean automakers' products were being shopped versus the guys down the block. And it's that disadvantage that makes a recent story from Automotive News so juicy.
AN is reporting that Margo Oge, former head of the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Transportation and Air Quality, got a tip in 2010 that Hyundai/Kia were "cheating" to get its impressive fuel economy numbers. The tip, said Oge (who retired from the EPA this past September), came from a senior vice president from a domestic automaker. The source was credible enough for Oge to launch an audit of the Hyundai figures, which ultimately lead to the debacle that we reported on a few months ago, and that the Korean company has been trying to bounce back from ever since.

Go fetch yourself: Hyundai Le Fil Rouge shows off self-parking and wireless charging

With the impending onset of autonomous technology, future cars will not only be able to drive people to their destinations without assistance, they'll also be able to perform tasks without humans in them at all. Hyundai and Kia, among other companies, see this as an opportunity to solve small infrastructure problems and quell inconveniences. In particular, the Hyundai group envisions an electric car that can park and charge itself using wireless induction technology. Using the Le Fil Rouge concept car as the subject, Hyundai released a video that demonstrates how this idea could potentially work. Assume that autonomous cars will be interlinked through a network. In this video, a parking garage and the owner of the network also have access and connectivity to that theoretical system. After the driver gets out of the car at her destination, she uses an app on her smartphone to instruct the car to go to the nearest available charging station. The car then drives to a paired parking garage, sans humans, and parks itself in an available spot with a wireless charging pad. Using magnetic induction, the car refills on energy. When the charge is complete, it then moves itself to a different normal parking spot using the so-called Automated Valet Parking System (AVPS) until the owner is ready for the car. When the owner summons the car using the app, the Le Fil Rouge, now shown in the video as ready with 341 miles of range, wakes itself up and drives back to the owner. Although this is a concept for now, Hyundai and Kia believe it could become a reality within the decade. They are considering commercializing such technology with their Level 4 autonomous vehicles, which are expected to launch about 2025. The ultimate goal of launching fully autonomous rides is set for 2030. The idea of self-parking is something several manufacturers are already working on. Tesla has its summon feature, NIssan is exploring the idea with its Pro Pilot program, and Volkswagen plans to unveil its own version in 2020. At this point, both wireless charging and self-parking features seem inevitable. Hyundai Le Fil Rouge Self-Parking View 5 Photos Related Video: