2013 Hyundai Elantra 4dr Sdn on 2040-cars

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Judge reduces damages in fatal Hyundai crash to $81M

Hyundai no longer has to pay $248 million as part of a court ruling from a fatal accident in Montana that killed two cousins in a 2005 Tiburon. The judge hearing the appeal revised the amount down to a total of about $81 million. She upheld the original $8.1 million in actual damages but reduced the punitive damages to $73 million from the previous $240 million.
According to Bloomberg, the judge refused Hyundai's desire to reduce the amount even further. She said in her court order that the company showed "an indifference to or reckless disregard of the health and safety of the motoring public."
In the original case, the families' attorneys alleged that the cracking of a faulty steering knuckle caused the fatal accident. Hyundai argued that fireworks had been let off inside the vehicle, which caused the driver to swerve and crash. In a statement released after the ruling, the automaker claimed that evidence supporting its defense was barred from the trial. According to Bloomberg, had the original amount of damages been upheld, it would have been the sixth-highest amount awarded by a jury in the US this year.

Bisimoto Hyundai Genesis Coupe is a 1,000-horsepower tuner dream

The big guns are starting to roll out at the 2013 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. This is the Bisimoto Hyundai Genesis Coupe, the promised 1,000-horsepower monster that was first shown at the end of September. We ventured across the SEMA floor to get an up-close look at this hugely powerful two-door.
The list of aftermarket parts fitted to this Genesis Coupe is extensive, ranging from that huge intercooler up front to a pair of Bisimoto/Turbonetics turbochargers to an AEM engine management system, all of which allow the 3.8-liter V6 to produce upwards of 1,000 hp. A full roll cage and Buddy Club seats and harnesses are fitted to the cabin, while a coil-over suspension blesses this Genny with some extra agility. We don't know what size Toyo R888 R-Compound tires those are, but as they're fitted to 20x11-inch wheels in back and 20x9.5-inch wheels in front, we're betting they're huge. We've got a full list of aftermarket goodies in the press release below.
We also have a full gallery of live images of the Bisimoto Genesis on the SEMA Show floor up top, so be sure to hop in and take a look at just what kind of potential can be found in this two-door Korean sports coupe.

Hyundai preparing to enter US commercial vehicle market

The commercial van segment has been surprisingly hot in the US over the past few years with new or updated entries from Ford, Nissan, Mercedes-Benz and Ram. Now, it looks like we can add one more to that lineup because Hyundai plans to enter the market here, too. The decision is part of the brand's newly announced push into the commercial vehicle segment worldwide, according to Reuters. Hyundai intends to invest 2 trillion South Korean won ($1.8 billion) into the venture through 2020, and the Korean automaker expects the segment to grow by 30 percent annually worldwide over the next five years. Around 1.6 trillion won ($1.5 billion) of that goes towards development of new models and engines for the division. Another $363 million is for expansion of the company's Jeon-ju plant to build 100,000 units there each year. According to Reuters, there's no set timeline on the US introduction of these models yet. Hyundai already sells commercial vehicles in Korea and China but holds just 2.1 percent of the global market in the segment. Autoblog reached out to Hyundai Motor America to learn more, but company spokesperson Jim Trainor said via email, "It is too early to provide any more details concerning the sale of commercial vehicles in the US market." The company is already setting it sights on the European commercial segment with the HG350 (pictured above). It's offered as either a cargo van or flatbed and is meant to compete against market stalwarts like the Ford Transit and Mercedes Sprinter. Rather than this vehicle, the US might get one of Hyundai's newly developed models, though. The automaker previously suggested to Autoblog that it wasn't "seriously considering" the HG350 for this market, at least at that time. Hyundai Motor Plans to increase Jeon-ju Commercial Vehicle Plant capacity to 100,000 units • Hyundai Motor to invest KRW 2 trillion on commercial vehicle development and production until 2020 • New Pilot Center, Global Training Center expected in Jeon-ju plant • 1,000 new jobs to be created following the increased capacity February 16, 2015 – Hyundai Motor announced today that it will invest KRW 2 trillion over the next six years to enhance its global commercial vehicle competitiveness. KRW 1.6 trillion will be invested on developing new models and engines to strengthen global commercial vehicle competitiveness.