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Hyundai in Shock as Toyota Camry Wins 2013 "Korea Car of the Year" Award

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Until recently, South Korea had a taxing policy that made importing cars nigh impossible. It was a means to protect its homegrown automakers, of course, i.e. Hyundai and Kia, from foreign competition. Now, though, it has opened its doors to foreigners, which is fair, as the Koreans face no such restrictions in regions such as North America, Europe or Asia.

Toyota, for one, only entered the South Korean market in 2010. In 2011, it managed to shift 5,020 vehicles. Last year, it more than doubled that number, to 10,795 and, despite the strong competition from German rivals, increased its market share from 4.78 to 8.25 percent.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

If you think the mid-1970s AMC Pacer was a design abomination, then you probably haven't laid eyes on the SsangYong Rodius, a large MPV that has been voted multiple times as one of the ugliest cars in production.

The funny thing about the Rodius (aside from its looks), is that it was penned by Ken Greenley, former head of the automotive design course at the Royal College of Art in London, which is one of the world's top automotive design schools.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

On January 2, the Hyundai Motor Group Chairman and CEO Mong-Koo Chung announced that “brand innovation based on quality” would be the world’s fifth largest automotive group’s new direction.

A few days earlier, on December 28, Kia design chief Peter Schreyer was the first non-Korean to be appointed President of the brand – a remarkable achievement for the 60-year old German and an acknowledgement of his contribution in the carmaker’s success since joining Kia in 2006.

Monday, January 7, 2013

New spy shots of a camouflaged Kia K5, which is the Korean domestic market name for the Optima mid-size sedan, have surfaced online in the carmaker's home country.

The test car snapped at a parking lot in South Korea was heavily disguised with the only visible part being the headlamps that appear to feature new circular units along with what looks like an LED accent strip sitting on top.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

In the year that just ended, Hyundai and its Kia affiliate delivered a combined 7.12 million vehicles worldwide, which represents an 8 percent growth over 2011, beating their initial annual target of 7 million units.

Hyundai, which released detailed results, sold a little over 4.4 million vehicles in 2012, up 8.6 percent from the previous year, while the brand's December global sales were up 5.4 percent, at 391,152 vehicles.

Friday, December 28, 2012

The man who played if not the, one of the most important roles in turning around the global reputation of Kia as the firm's Chief Design Officer, Peter Schreyer, has been appointed to the role of president, the first non-Korean to hold that title in the automaker's history.

Schreyer, who will keep his position as Kia's design boss, is one of three presidents at the company. His promotion is a sign that the Hyundai and Kia group wants design to play an even greater role in the future as it continues its global expansion challenging Germany's car industry.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Sometimes people like to criticize other drivers for not acting promptly when faced with a danger on the road, but truth is, it's one thing watching it from the comfort of your home through a video and a completely different experience when you're sitting behind the wheel and have only seconds - if not less, to make a decision. Read more »

Hyundai Introduces Facelifted 2013 Equus Luxury Sedan in South Korea

Friday, December 7, 2012

Hyundai is on a roll these days updating or completely replacing its models one after the other.

Following yesterday's news on the subtly revised 2013 Grandeur or as North American consumers know the car, the Azera, Hyundai has now presented a facelifted version of its flagship Equus saloon in its home market of South Korea.

The current Equus is based on an extended version of the Genesis Sedan's platform and went on sale in Korea in 2009 and the United States in 2010.

For the 2013 model, Hyundai has applied some modest revisions to the car's exterior, mainly by removing the chrome trim strips on the front and rear bumpers, designing a new set of alloy wheels in two different sizes, adding new mirrors and making changes to the graphics of the LED tail lamps.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

The latest generation of the Grandeur has only been on the market since early 2011 in South Korea, and even less in the United States where it launched as the all-new 2012 Azera in April this year, yet Hyundai has released a subtle refresh for its mid-size sedan in its home country.

For the 2013 model year, the Grandeur gets a new waterfall-like front grille along with a fresh selection of colors and alloy wheel designs on the outside.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

The mid-size Venza crossover has just become the latest U.S-built Toyota model to be exported to South Korea. The move marks the first time that the five-passenger model, which couples elements from SUVs and minivans, is offered outside North America.

Toyota forecasts that it will sell around 600 units of the recently updated crossover annually through its distributor in the Asian country.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

When Kia first announced the facelifted 2013 K7 sedan (named Cadenza in markets outside Korea) at the end of October, we only got a pair of pictures showing the front- and rear-quarters of the mid-size model.

We don't know if the K7 piqued your curiosity, but if it did, we may be able to help as we have a new set of pictures, which this time, include the interior, along with several videos.

Monday, November 12, 2012

In emergencies, some people panic and lose their capacity to think and function with catastrophic results, while others, keep their cool and take control of the situation.

The South Korean driver featured in the following video no doubt belongs to the second category of people.

While the motorist was driving up a steep and narrow road that was partially blocked by a crew of workmen, he saw a large truck with a crane starting to roll down uncontrollably.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

The idea had been floating around for quite some time and now, General Motors has officially confirmed plans to move production of its next generation Chevrolet Cruze compact series from South Korea to its troubled European operations in order to help improve efficiency at its plants there.

GM Korea boss Sergio Rocha broke the news to company's South Korean union, according to a report from Reuters. Union spokesman Choi Jong-hak said that Rocha told them the new Cruze would be manufactured in five regions around the world, including Europe, the United States and China, but declined to provide further details.

Monday, November 5, 2012

We already know that it's going to cost Hyundai and Kia a lot of money to compensate some 900,000 vehicle owners in the States (as much as $362 million, according to Nam Kyeong Moon, an analyst at KTB Investment & Securities Co.) after the Environmental Protection Agency discovered that the two carmakers posted inflated gas-mileage ratings.

However, the penalty in brand value may be even higher for the Korean car brands, according to market researcher Interbrand Corp.

Monday, October 29, 2012

A couple of weeks ago, Kia showed its revamped K7 mid-size sedan, also known as the Cadenza in overseas markets, to a select few in South Korea with a handful of pictures making their way online to afford us our first look at the car, which is related to the Hyundai Azera.

On Monday, Kia officially revealed the 2013 model K7 in its home market of Korea where it also announced that the mid-size model will go on sale in different regions around the world during the first half of 2013 as the Cadenza.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

It's not difficult for Kia to come up with a mid-life refresh for its cars as the Korean company is constantly updating its automobile range and together revising its design language.

Back in September, CarScoop reader Sach Mathur spotted Kia testing a camouflaged K7 sedan in Colorado, which not only confirmed the pending facelift but also the brand's intentions to launch the car in North America, most likely under the Cadenza nameplate.

Today, pictures of the updated K7 shot during a special presentation in South Korea made their way on local forums and websites.

Monday, October 15, 2012

There's talk again in South Korea regarding the possibility of the latest iteration of the Hyundai Sonata mid-size saloon having sudden unintended acceleration problems after a new incident that took place in Seoul's Seocho district last Wednesday on October 10, 2012, and which resulted in 10 people being injured.

The latest accident in question involved a brand new Hyundai Sonata YF taxicab that was said to have been only two weeks old.

Video footage sourced from a Mercedes-Benz car that was following the Sonata from behind, shows the taxi slowly moving ahead in traffic when all of a sudden, it accelerated and violently smashed into the car in front.

Unlike past seasons, with four races still to go, predicting this year’s Formula 1 champion is, practically, impossible. That’s because consistency and outright performance are two variables that change greatly from one Grand Prix to another, not least because of their tires’ behavior.

The Korean GP that took place on Suday was yet another race that had most teams and their drivers struggling with tire performance.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

We guess someone wasn't paying attention to the road, which is kind of scary if you think about it, as this accident that was caught on camera could happen to anyone.

Granted, the Daewoo Matiz (did you know that its design was based on a rejected concept for a Fiat 500 by Italdesign Giugiaro named the Lucciola?) is a small car but not small enough not to notice on the road, especially in broad daylight…

Friday, September 21, 2012

While Kia surely got its act together in terms of designing, engineering and building vehicles over the past decade or so, the South Korean automaker seems a bit confused when it comes to naming its vehicles.

How else can you explain the fact that its new global compact sedan will have three different names, depending on the region?

In its home market of South Korea, where it was officially introduced this week, it will be called K3, while when it arrives in the U.S. and Canada, we will come to know it as the 2014 model year Forte, and in other markets such as Australia and Brazil, as the new Cerato.

Whatever it is called, the new compact model has adopted the brand's latest design DNA both inside and out, while offering a raft of new technologies such as a parking assistance system, LED headlamps and Kia's next generation “telematics” service UVO, which enables drivers to control their cars via a smartphone or other IT devices.