2010 Hyundai Santa Fe on 2040-cars

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2015 Hyundai Genesis appears uncovered [UPDATE]

Hyundai gave us a tease of its second-gen Genesis sedan courtesy of the HCD-14 Genesis Concept displayed at this year's Detroit Auto Show, and while we've seen numerous spy shots of the car testing since (both on and off the track), all were heavily camouflaged. That all changed today when the South Korean site bobaedream.co.kr posted an image of the new luxury sedan sitting out completely uncovered (click the image to enlarge).
While we can't see much more than the face of the new Genesis sedan, it does appear to be a striking improvement over the current car that debuted back in 2008. The jutting, upright grille is very similar in appearance to the HCD-14 Concept, while the headlights and fascia look like a combination of Mercedes S-Class and E-Class. The body creasing isn't as dramatic as the concept, but the roofline and glasshouse look to be almost identical to the show car. Based on how finished the car looks in this picture, our guess is that we could see Hyundai's new Genesis at an upcoming auto show like LA or Detroit.
UPDATE: Per the request of the individual pictured next to the Hyundai Genesis in the original photo that spurred this story, we have removed said image from the post. You can still see the new Genesis here at the source, for the moment.

Recharge Wrap-up: Chevy teases Bolt driving range, China pursues EV subsidy cheaters

Chevy is teasing the Bolt's driving range, which it is set to reveal on Tuesday. It will certainly be able to travel more than 200 miles between charges, but the second and third digits in that value, as it stands today, are still question marks. On its Facebook page, Chevrolet is asking fans to try to guess the official range. Of course, Tesla fans have already started posting their own snide remarks in the comments. Chevy fans are certainly hoping to see the Bolt's range eclipse that of Tesla's upcoming Model 3, which the California-based automaker puts at 215 miles. See Chevy's post on Facebook to make your own guess, or check back there (or here at AutoblogGreen) for the official number once it is unveiled. Fuel cell company PowerCell Sweden says it has signed an agreement with a Chinese company to make range extenders for commercial trucks. The unnamed Chinese customer has placed an order and signed a memorandum of understanding with PowerCell Sweden, and the partners will develop methanol reformer fuel cell range extenders for electric distribution trucks. "Our unique expertise in fuel cells and reformer technology is receiving an increasing attention worldwide and we are truly pleased to get another Chinese order," says PowerCell Sweden Sales Director Andreas Boden. Read more at Green Car Congress, or from PowerCell. China is accusing major automakers of violating EV subsidy rules. After the country's Ministry of Finance penalized five companies with fines and, in one case, revocation of production license for subsidy cheats, China has since named 20 more potential violators, including Nissan, Hyundai, JAC, and a subsidiary of BYD. Of the first five companies to be punished under the investigation, Suzhou Gemsea Coach Manufacturing is having its production license revoked, while four others, including a subsidiary of Chery, are being fined for about half of the subsidies received. The scandal is bad new for China's subsidy program, which has helped spur sales of plug-in vehicles. Read more from Fortune, or at Hybrid Cars.

Hyundai files patent for smartphone feature disabler in proximity to steering wheel

Combatting driver distraction continues to be a hot topic in automotive safety, especially when it comes to young motorists. While simply not using a smartphone behind the wheel would fix much of the problem, automakers are trying to work out complicated ways to make people safer. For example, GM is experimenting with head and eye tracking to make sure folks are paying attention to the road. Now, Hyundai might have come up with a technology that offers a very simple fix: disable the phones. The Korean automaker explains the idea in explicit detail in a recently published patent. The tech specifically "limits or disables the use of some of mobile device features which could cause distraction to the user," according to the abstract. Depending on variables like the vehicle's speed, the system determines what smartphone functions are safe to use, including texting or voice calls. Based on a plethora of permutations in the document, these restrictions could only be for the area around the driver's seat or for the whole vehicle. The key to the patent is placing antennas around the vehicle and monitoring for cellular signals. When the system detects them, it can begin selectively deciding what features to allow on the device. The tech isn't a simple on/off switch either, and can possibly detect the time of day or importance of the caller to let messages though. The major downside to all of this is the phone would need to run a specific program or firmware for all of this to work. With such a recently published patent, it might be years before the tech arrives in Hyundai vehicles, if at all. Still, this is an interesting solution. Of course, it would be far simpler if people just put down their phones. You can read the full description of the automaker's concept, here. News Source: Free Patens Online via US Patent and Trademark Office Auto News Hyundai Technology Emerging Technologies Smartphone distracted driving patent cell phone driver distraction