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Hyundai plots a Nissan Juke fighter

A few years ago, Hyundai Motor America CEO Dave Zuchowski suggested interest in taking on the Nissan Juke with a subcompact crossover. It looks like that project is coming together, as we caught Hyundai testing a small, curiously-styled SUV in Germany recently. The SUV is expected to share a lot of the same chassis components as the i20, a hatchback that's sold in other parts of the world, with the same engine lineup as the new i30, another hatchback that Hyundai doesn't sell in the America. In the United Kingdom, the i30 is available with engines including a 1.4-liter gasoline and a 1.6-liter diesel unit. Front-wheel drive would be standard with all-wheel drive an option. The heavily-camouflaged prototype doesn't give away a lot of the SUV's design. The front of the vehicle is hidden away, but what we can see the grille features hexagonal shapes instead of the horizontal bars that we've become accustomed to seeing in Hyundais. The headlights mimic the Jeep Cherokee's design with thin slits on top and larger, round units toward the bottom. At the back, camouflage hides the majority of the prototype, but the taillights appear to be different than the rest of Hyundai's offerings. The outline of the taillights resembles the same units found on the Intrado Concept, indicating the vehicle will get some design cues from the hydrogen-powered prototype. A single exhaust outlet protrudes underneath the rear end. The overall profile of the SUV appears to be smaller than the Tucson, which is currently Hyundai's smallest crossover in the US. Related Video: Featured Gallery Hyundai SUV Spy Shots View 10 Photos Image Credit: CarPix Design/Style Spy Photos Hyundai Nissan Crossover SUV Future Vehicles

Hyundai takes fully autonomous fuel cell vehicles on 70 mph road trip

Hyundai has announced three test vehicles based on its upcoming NEXO fuel cell vehicles, fitted with Level 4 autonomous technology, have completed a trial journey of 118 miles from Seoul to Pyeongchang across the Korean peninsula completely autonomously. It's a world first for fuel cell powered vehicles to reach Level 4 autonomous driving, which translates as "mind off" driving with no driver input needed. One of the interesting things about the NEXO fleet's trial is that it was performed in regular traffic at public highways, at speeds up to nearly 70mph. Earlier autonomous car testing in Korea has been performed on selected sections of road and at lower speeds than the highest allowed Korean highway speed reached in this trial. Hyundai says the test drive included following the traffic's flow, completing lane changes, and even handling motorway toll booths — and that the only human intervention needed was pressing "Cruise" and "Set" buttons on the three cars' steering wheels, to put them in autonomous mode. The NEXO has been designed as a hydrogen fuel cell car from the ground up, instead of the earlier, ICE-based Tucson FCEV. Hyundai claims a target range of 500 miles (NEDC) for the NEXO, for a single, five-minute hydrogen charge, and a system efficiency of 60 percent. On the run to CES from L.A. last month, Hyundai declared a real-world range of 360 miles for the tested NEXO; the 120-kW motor takes the fuel cell crossover to 60 mph in 9.9 seconds. The vehicles used in the South Korean trial use a combination of radar, lidar and cameras to monitor their surroundings, and some of these systems are already used in production Hyundai vehicles. At CES, Hyundai announced its partnership with Aurora Innovation, which is a Silicon Valley startup set up by former Alphabet Inc and Tesla engineers; the autonomous NEXOs are likely to feature Aurora's input. Hyundai sees commercialization of Level 4 vehicles taking place in 2021, though only in what it calls "pilot smart cities," or locations tailored to be connected enough to make the implementation of autonomous tech easier. "Fully" autonomous driving would be at commercial level by 2030. As for the vehicle itself, it features virtual assistant technology that is complemented with noise canceling to further turn the NEXO into a cocoon-like pod; there's also "Home Connect" tech which enables the passengers to use smart home gadgets remotely during their commute. Related Video:

Pre-owned deal alert: Hyundai Genesis

Hyundai used to make really crappy cars: horrible to drive, horrible build quality, and unreliable. Any sales person that sold Hyundais in the early 2000s can regale you with a story that goes like this: "I was delivering a brand new Hyundai to a customer and _____________ broke, but I told the customer _______________ and the customer brought the car home anyway. Selling those pieces of crap required true salesmanship. Hyundai knew its products would not sell without a competitive edge, so it offered one of the best warranties in America: 5 years/60,000 miles bumper to bumper and 10 year/100,000 miles on the powertrain. At the time most consumers viewed that warranty as a necessity; they felt they would not buy a Hyundai without the best warranty in America. All of that changed in 2008 with the debut of the Hyundai Genesis sedan. Everyone thought a luxurious Hyundai was impossible until they saw and drove the vehicle. The design was subdued yet elegant, the interior was not world-class but was above average, the ride was comfortable and quiet, and its steering was acceptable. The Genesis sedan is powered by a 4.6-liter, 375-horsepower V8 or a 3.8-liter, 290-horsepower V6. Both of these engines were smooth and propelled the car to 60 in under six seconds. The Genesis was not better than a Lexus or a Mercedes. But it was a great value: The starting price was $34,000 for a V6 base and topped out well under $50,000 if you got the V8 and tech package. Even so, Hyundai knew people might not plunk down $40,000 for a Hyundai, so they leased them out at really aggressive numbers. A no-money-down lease on the Genesis was around $450 a month during the darkest days of the recession. I was told the dealers were leasing them out for around $350 a month. Which brings us to today, when the market is flooded with tons of lease returns. A used Hyundai Genesis is an even better value. There are a good number of 2013 models with under 45,000 miles on the odometer for under $20,000; the average price is at $18,500. Assuming the vehicle was leased in 2013, you would still get at least two years and 20k miles on the bumper-to-bumper and at least five years of powertrain warranty with the car. Most of these lease return models come with power everything, leather, sunroof, upgraded sound system – most of what you expect in a luxury car. Some are more aggressively priced than others.