Hyundai’s Xcient hydrogen truck to debut in Germany

Hyundai Motor said Tuesday that its Xcient Fuel Cell, the world’s first mass-produced, heavy-duty truck powered by hydrogen, will make its debut in Germany as part of the carmaker’s efforts to expand its presence in the largest commercial vehicle market.  A total of 27 units of Xcient trucks will be delivered to seven local companies in the logistics and manufacturing sectors. This will be the second time that Hyundai has exported its fuel-cell truck to Europe after it clinche

Aug. 2, 2022

Revision seeks to allow battery subscription for EVs

The South Korean government said Monday that it would revise the law to allow battery subscription services for electric vehicles, a move that is expected to pull down EV prices almost one-third from their current price tag and lower entry barriers for potential buyers.  The Ministry of Land, Transport and Infrastructure said that a 36-member regulatory reform committee held a meeting on Thursday to approve the planned revision. The current law on vehicle registration does not allow two

Aug. 1, 2022

Hyundai Motor unveils smart city vision in Singapore

Hyundai Motor Group on Monday unveiled its vision for smart city at the World Cities Summit in Singapore, with an aim to offer a blueprint for smart mobility solutions that revitalize urban communities.  During a panel discussion at the biannual summit, the automaker’s President and Chief Innovation Officer Chi Young-cho offered a detailed look into the company’s vision for human-focused city design through its HMG Smart City concept. The company first unveiled such vision for

Aug. 1, 2022

Over 1% of cars in S. Korea are EVs: report

The accumulated number of electric vehicles in South Korea appears to have surpassed the 300,000-mark in July, taking 1.2 percent of the total number of registered vehicles in country, according to a report published by the Transport Ministry on Sunday. The report said South Korea had 298,633 EV registrations as of June. Industry insiders expect this number to have exceeded 300,000 last month. Nearly 70,000 EVs were sold in just the first half of this year, a 73.5 percent rise in sales compar

July 31, 2022

[Test Drive] Facelifted Seltos upgrades compact SUV standards

Design-wise, the new Seltos is not much different from the old version but in terms of performance, Kia’s facelifted compact SUV has changed so remarkably that it almost seems like a complete reworking. From the front, it is hard to tell the difference between the new Seltos and the previous version launched in 2019, while the rear has an updated bumper and new tail lightening. The car’s signature Starmap lighting has been applied across the width of the car and combined with an LE

July 31, 2022

LS Cable eyes global undersea cable market

LS Cable & System is expanding investment and tapping into new markets for undersea cables amid a rapidly growing demand for offshore wind power generation, which requires high-quality subsea cables, as countries began executing policies for carbon neutrality. Early this year, LS Cable inked a deal worth 350 billion won ($266 million) to supply undersea cables for wind power in North America. Demand for subsea cables is expected to grow further as US President Joe Biden announced earlier

July 27, 2022

Audi Korea expands electric, compact car lineups

Audi sold a total of 25,615 vehicles in South Korea last year, marking the third-largest sales volume among import carmakers here. The German automaker said it has focused on expanding its lineup to include compact vehicles such as the Audi Q3 and A3, as well as electric cars e-tron S and Q4 e-tron. In 2021, Audi sold 1,553 electric cars, the largest number of electric cars sold among premium import car brands. In December, it launched the Audi e-tron GT and RS e-tron GT, which are at the van

July 25, 2022

Renault Korea Motors makes car repair service available anytime, anywhere

Renault Korea Motors is hoping to better cater to customer needs with a service that allows car owners to drop off their vehicles at the automaker’s repair shops anytime, anywhere across the country. The carmaker introduced its “Drop the Keys” service in April, which allows drivers to bring in their cars for check-ups and repair anytime of the week. Local auto repair stores usually close around 6-7 p.m. on weekdays and earlier on Saturdays, while most of them do not operate

July 25, 2022

Hyundai Motor Group to get hefty incentives for Georgia EV plant

Hyundai Motor Group will receive benefits worth 2.4 trillion won ($1.8 billion) in tax exemptions and incentives from the US state of Georgia in exchange for building its first dedicated electric vehicles manufacturing plant there. The subsidy package of property and income tax exemptions, as well as other incentives in land, infrastructure and equipment purchases, is the largest-ever offered by the US state. According to the signed deal disclosed on Saturday, the Korean automaker will get a ta

July 24, 2022

China’s BYD eyes foray into Korean EV market

BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, is getting ready for EV sales in the South Korean market, going head to head against the country’s top automaker Hyundai Motor Group with lower price tags and better performing cars. Industry sources said Sunday that BYD recently inked a deal to rent an office near Seoul Station in central Seoul and started recruiting personnel, including those for vehicle registration, after-sales services and marketing activities.  Since the

July 24, 2022

Hyundai Motor logs best-ever quarterly profit

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor on Thursday reported its best-ever quarterly result for the April-June period, with operating profits surging 58 percent to nearly 3 trillion won ($2.2 billion) on the back of increased luxury vehicle sales and the weak Korean won. The carmaker’s operating profit jumped to 2.97 trillion won with the rate of operating profit reaching 8.3 percent. The last time the company recorded operating profit above 2 trillion won was in the second quarter of 2014

July 21, 2022

Incheon Airport targets 106m travelers a year

Incheon Airport is pumping up its Level 4 construction plan, a project to expand its second passenger terminal, to maintain its leading position as an air transport hub in East Asia. The 4.84 trillion won ($3.69 billion) Level 4 construction plan involves a major upgrade of the airport’s infrastructure, through measures such as expanding its flight network and building a new runway. This year, the Incheon International Airport Corp. will focus on the expansion of Terminal 2 and its parki

July 20, 2022

Hyundai Motor, Rolls-Royce team up for air mobility

South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor Group said Tuesday that it would collaborate with global aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce to deliver all-electric propulsion and hydrogen fuel cell technology for advanced air mobility (AAM). AAM is a future mobility concept that integrates transformational aircraft design and flying tech. It has been the Korean carmaker’s recent focus for future mobility business. It created Supernal, an AAM-dedicated company based in US, last year.  According to H

July 19, 2022

[From the Scene] Where have all the taxis gone? Seoul's taxi shortage intensifies

A 24-year-old office employee surnamed Park stands with his coworker on the sidewalk next to Tehaeranro in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, after leaving a company dinner at midnight on Tuesday. They both whip out their phones to order a cab on two of South Korea‘s most used taxi reservation apps, Kakao T and UT, but have little luck. A few taxis race past them, but are occupied or blinking with a green display that reads “reserved.” “Using a taxi is almost the only way to get home pa

July 19, 2022

Han Sung Motor promotes online ESG campaign with environmental personality quiz

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, an introspective self-report questionnaire that divides people into 16 types, has been a popular topic of conversation or pastime among millennials and Generation Z in South Korea, as the pandemic gave them more time to introspect. It’s not uncommon to see the young cohort -- those born between the 1980s up to the 2010s -- start conversations with people they meet for the first time by asking each other about their MBTI types – a combination of extra

July 19, 2022

Damage claims surge over frequent flight cancellations

The number of damage claims over canceled or delayed flights has increased as airlines struggle with manpower shortages, according to the Korea Consumer Agency on Monday. A total of 213 air service-related cases requesting compensation were submitted from January to May this year. In April, when South Korea dropped the bulk of its COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, the number of filed claims doubled on-month to 60, the agency said. The number of overseas travelers in Incheon Airport alon

July 18, 2022

Earnings surprise expected for Hyundai, Kia: reports

South Korea’s largest and second-largest carmakers Hyundai Motor and Kia are expected to deliver earnings surprises with record-high profits in the second quarter on improved product mixes and a weakening Korean won. According to the securities industry Monday, Hyundai Motor is expected to record 2.3 trillion won ($1.7 billion) in operating profit in the April-June period, surpassing 2 trillion won mark for the first time in eight years. In the 2014 Q2, Hyundai Motor recorded 2.87 trilli

July 18, 2022

Hyundai takes lead in EV efficiency with Ioniq 6

Hyundai Motor is expected to renew energy efficiency competition among electric vehicles, with its upcoming Ioniq 6 boasting the world’s best energy efficiency. The Ioniq 6, Hyundai’s second all-electric vehicle that made its global debut at the Busan Motor Show on Thursday, has an energy efficiency of 6 kilometers per kilowatt-hour, the highest rate among EVs around the world. The carmaker pointed to its EV-dedicated platform E-GMP with optimal heat, battery and power control sy

July 17, 2022

SKT aims to become first to debut air taxi by 2025

BUSAN – SK Telecom, the nation’s leading telecom carrier, said Friday it aims to debut air taxi service by 2025, calling UAM or urban air mobility a “game changer” for future mobility innovations. “Our rivals also plan to launch air taxi services in the coming years, but we are confident that we will be the first to bring UAM aircrafts to the market,” said SK Telecom’s Chief Development Officer Ha Min-yong during a press conference held at the 2022 Bus

July 17, 2022

Hankook Tire to supply high-performance tires for German Big 3

Hankook Tire & Technology, the world’s sixth-largest tire-maker, said Friday that it has started supplying its tires for high-performance sedans and sports cars of the so-called “German Big 3”: Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. The tire-maker will supply its Ventus S1 evo Z tires to BMW’s X3 M and X4 M models, while also supplying its Ventus S1 evo 3 and Winter i cept evo 2 tires to Audi’s RS lineup. Multiple SUVs of the Mercedes-Benz AMG lineup, including GLC an

July 17, 2022