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Luc Donckerwolke steps down as head of Hyundai Group design

Automotive News got hold of "an internal note" declaring that Hyundai Group design chief Luc Donckerwolke is stepping down today for "personal reasons." After ex-Volkswagen Group pen Peter Schreyer took over Kia design in 2006 and began the South Korean automaker's renaissance, Donckerwolke became the next VW Group design emigre to head east in 2015. He began his tenure in charge of Hyundai and Genesis, then took over as group design head when Schreyer stepped back from day-to-day operations in November 2018. Donckerwolke pushed for emotional products and brands that didn't look like different-sized versions of one another, dividing the trio of company makes into sexy and sporty Hyundai, young and cool Kia, and haute couture Genesis. Two of the three brands are on their way. Kia's got some top products but is still tweaking its formula.  The Belgian's design resume stretches back to his first job at Peugeot in 1990, where he stayed for two years before moving to Volkswagen. That's where things get good, a 23-year run including work on the first-generation Skoda Octavia and Fabia, the Audi A2, A4 Avant, and R8 Le Mans race car, the Lamborghini Diablo VT, Gallardo and Murcielago, and the Bentley Flying Spur among many others. Credits at Hyundai include the Kona and Palisade, and at Genesis, the G80 and G90 sedans and the GV80 crossover. Considering Donckerwolke's background, it's no surprise to hear he opined for a Genesis supercar within a year of arrival at Hyundai, and had ideas about what he wanted to do. He said at the 2016 New York Auto Show, "I won't reveal the secret now because it's still my baby! Obviously, yes, this is part of the interest of designing a brand, being able to create [supercars]. It's not just something which we'll do, let's say a rational traditional project, but there will be some highlights." It's too bad we'll miss that. Hyundai Group bosses won't name a successor yet, leaving SangYup Lee as head of design at Hyundai and Genesis and Karim Habib, the ex-BMW and ex-Infiniti designer hired last year, in charge of Kia design. Donckerwolke issued a statement that read in part, "It's been an honor and privilege to contribute to the shaping of the future of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis.

Kia teases Geneva concept, is a Nissan Juke rival in the cards?

These four photos tell us most about the pomegranate-red concept Kia will be bringing to this year's 2013 Geneva Motor Show. An accompanying 66-word press release gives away nothing, so we're left to wonder if this is some kind of Nissan Juke rival that the South Korean company is toying with.
Even with the exaggerated dimensions of concept cars, this unnamed "urban concept car" looks somewhat larger than the average subcompact hatch, and there are some seriously Juke-ish lines around the rear three-quarter. This concept, however, appears to be a two-door model, unlike the Juke with its hidden rear handles, but that doesn't mean a production model couldn't add a couple of entry points.
We'll know for sure in March. You'll have to make the four high-res photos and those 66 words in the release below last until then.

Kia to green-light GT and Provo for production?

Kia is looking to inject a bit more performance life into its brand, and according to Auto Express, the company is looking at creating sporty models based on two of its recent concept cars, the GT four-door from the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show (shown above) and the Provo hybrid hatchback that debuted in Geneva last week (inset, right).
"The GT is close to being approved and going into production, but, as with all our cars, they have to be developed on a sound financial footing," Benny Oeyen, Kia Europe's VP of marketing and product planning, told Auto Express. When it debuted, the GT four-door was powered by a turbocharged 3.3-liter V6, reportedly good for 389 horsepower and 394 pound-feet of torque, mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
The Provo, on the other hand, could stand as a sort of halo car for the company's B-segment offerings. It would ride on the same front-wheel-drive platform as the Rio compact, though Kia says it's eager to keep the concept's gasoline-electric powertrain intact. "Our brand is currently rational, but there's space for a B-coupe," says Oeyen. Of course, the company would indeed have to look at different naming possibilities for its B-segment coupe, since the week-old Provo is already stirring up some controversy.