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Hyundai-Kia dealer offers $180k in gift cards to local residents

In many smaller communities, auto dealers are often major players in the local business and political world, and they interact with large portions of the population. Now, Grand West Hyundai and Grand West Kia in Grand Junction, CO, are putting their marketing dollars to work in a way to help the local economy, while also potentially generating some sales at the same time. Over the next six months, the dealers are contacting about 8,000 previous customers and offering them a gift card worth at least $50 to over 100 of the city's shops and restaurants (pictured above), according to Automotive News. All people need to do to receive the certificate is stop by the showrooms. Hopefully, the visitors would check out a new Hyundai or Kia at the same time. "We'd love to sell them a new car, but it is really a customer-appreciation gesture," said Ken Reeher, the dealers' marketing manager, to Automotive News. The two stores already bought about 3,600 cards with $181,000 going into the local economy. Paying people to come to the showroom isn't really new but generally works well. The Colorado dealers expect around half of the people they contact to visit for the gift card, which is still significantly more foot traffic than from traditional mailings. The decision to keep the cards local also means more money goes to small businesses, and the move gains goodwill in the community, too. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Aaron Hoffman Marketing/Advertising Hyundai Kia Car Buying Car Dealers colorado

U.S.-spec 2018 Hyundai Kona bows in L.A.

Earlier this year, Hyundai revealed its first entry into the increasingly competitive compact crossover segment with the 2018 Kona. That car, though, wasn't configured for the North American market, and it was unclear what sort of specs it would have in the U.S. Now we have an answer to that question, as Hyundai unveils the U.S.-production version of the Kona at the 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show. Americans will have their choice of two gasoline powertrains for the Kona. One is a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine running on the Atkinson cycle. It's good for a peak 147 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 132 pound-feet of torque at 4,500 rpm. The 2.0-liter will be mated to a six-speed automatic transmission with manual mode and an overdrive lock-up torque converter for highway efficiency. The second powertrain option is a turbocharged 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine paired to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. This setup provides 175 hp at 5,500 rpm, and 195 lb-ft available from 1,500 to 4,500 rpm. The turbocharger uses electronic wastegate control, and oil jets and a water jacket insert help cool pistons and the top of the cylinder block, respectively. These features help preserve the engine and provide more efficiency. The 1.6-liter turbo will be available in the Limited and Ultimate trim levels. View 13 Photos The Kona will be available in front-wheel- and all-wheel-drive models, each with its own suspension setup. Both will feature MacPherson struts up front. 2WD models will have a rigid torsion beam in the rear, while AWD models benefit from an independent multi-link suspension. The Kona also offers 16-, 17- and 18-inch wheel options, depending on trim level. Inside, the Kona provides a variety of technology features. It has a standard 7-inch touchscreen display, with an 8-inch nav touchscreen also available. It offers Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, satellite radio, Hyundai's Blue Link LTE connectivity technology and wireless smartphone charging. An available head-up display helps keep eyes on the road where they belong. Other safety features include forward collision avoidance with pedestrian detection, lane-keep assist, blind-spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert and high beam assist. Hyundai will offer the Kona with "extroverted" paint colors. An optional color-contrasting roof will help it stand out even more. The Hyundai Kona will arrive in U.S. dealerships in the first quarter of 2018.

For Hyundai, ZEV credit rules are working

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has been working on its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) plan since the early 1990s, so no one at Hyundai could act surprised when the automaker finally started selling enough vehicles to be affected by the rules around 2012. In fact, the company had lots of time to prepare for being reclassified as an Intermediate Volume automaker and the obligations to sell ZEV vehicles – fuel cell vehicles, electric vehicles, or plug ins – that come with that title. Today, Hyundai has more credits than it needs and no plans to sell them to other, less forward-looking automakers. "We are not in the business of buying or selling ZEV credits." - Mike O'Brien Anyone paying close enough attention will know that Hyundai has been working on hydrogen fuel cell technology since a little before 2000. O'Brien said that Hyundai's fuel cell program "predated regulation for us by more than a decade and a half." That's why the company is in good standing today. In the ZEV marketplace, the value of one ZEV credit is private information between those who sell them and those looking to buy. So, while we don't know how much money Hyundai's extra credits are actually worth, California does publish the credit balances, so we can at least know how many Hyundai has.The most recent seem to be from 2014, which are available here. That's when Hyundai had 896 ZEV credits, 4,825.71 "advanced technology partial zero-emission vehicles" (AT-PZEV) and 6,751.80 PZEV credits, but O'Brien said that, "We are not in the business of buying or selling credits. To my knowledge, there is nobody I know in this company that has investigated either the purchase or sale of ZEV credits." Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell in BeeZero Hydrogen Carsharing Program View 6 Photos Instead, Hyundai - like many other automakers - is generating its own credits by selling zero-emission vehicles to offset the vehicles it sells that are too dirty in the ZEV credit scheme. And the company's recent expansion of Tucson Fuel Cell sales into Northern California is likely a preview for the vehicle's availability in the Northeast. After all, that's where the next batch of H2 stations is due and O'Brien has said in the past the Hyundai will sell the vehicle where there's fuel. O'Brien said Hyundai is talking to the same hydrogen providers that competitors like Honda and Toyota are talking to (so, FirstElement Fuel), but is not ready to make any announcements about any infrastructure partnerships.