Lawmakers seek tougher penalties on carmakers manipulating fuel economy

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean lawmakers are seeking regulatory changes to force carmakers to give monetary compensation to consumers when they deliberately misrepresent the fuel economy of their vehicles. Rep. Kwon Sok-chang of the ruling Saenuri Party said on July 4 that he will propose a revised Motor Vehicle Management Act to include mandatory monetary compensation. At present, misrepresentation of a vehicle’s fuel economy is categorized as a “minor defect,” and consumers are not eligible for a

July 4, 2016

Hyundai Sonata gets top marks from U.S. consumer reviewer

Hyundai Motor Co.'s midsize sedan, the Sonata, has received the best evaluation from a U.S. consumer magazine, beating those by Toyota Motor and other foreign rivals, a report showed Monday.Hyundai Sonata Hybrid SE clinched the top spot in terms of the best combination of fuel economy and acceleration in a test by Consumer Reports in the midsized car category.Hyundai Sonata Hybrid SE is listed as 39 miles per gallon while it can go from zero to 60 miles per hour in 8.2 seconds.Ford Fusion SE Hyb

July 4, 2016

Malibu Hybrid misses low-pollution certification

[THE INVESTOR] GM Korea’s Malibu Hybrid has failed to obtain a low-pollution certification, making it ineligible for tax benefits on eco-friendly cars, government and industry sources.On July 3, GM Korea notified through its website that benefits for purchasing hybrid vehicles are not applied to the Malibu Hybrid. According to the Ministry of Environment, the Malibu Hybrid is excluded from the measure due to failing emission standards. MalibuAt 95 grams per kilometer, the vehicle meets carbon di

July 4, 2016

Renault Samsung offers limited edition of QM3 Cannes Blue

Renault Samsung, a Korean arm of French automaker Renault, began to sell this month a special limited edition of QM3 Cannes Blue with a discount of up to 1 million won ($870) for the summer season, the company said Sunday. From July to August, the automaker will offer 500 units of QM3 Cannes Blue, the brand‘s third color revolution following the previous versions of Sonic Red and Chocolat Brown.  QM3 Cannes Blue (Renault Samsung)The company said the QM3 Cannes Blue’s strong Cannes blue body and

July 3, 2016

Hyundai dismisses chances of imminent EV dominance

A senior researcher at Hyundai Motor has said that it will take much longer for electric vehicles to become mainstream in the global auto market than industry expectations.Global institutions including the International Energy Agency recently predicted that eco-friendly cars would secure more than half the global vehicle market share by 2030. Hyundai Motor“The prediction is too optimistic. In order for EVs to become mainstream like smartphones are now, there should be at least more than 100 asse

July 3, 2016

Hyundai Motor's Genesis top best car brand in Q2

Hyundai Motor Co.'s luxury car brand Genesis has become the most valuable car label in the second quarter in South Korea, a marketing firm said Sunday.According to the index released by Brand Stock Corp., Genesis rose 22 steps to finish at 24th place on the company's top 100 local and foreign brands in South Korea in the April-June period.Among car brands, Genesis ranked No. 1, relegating Hyundai's Grandeur, which was the previous title holder, to second place. The full-size sedan ranked 49th on

July 3, 2016

Sales of hybrid cars in Korea soar in June

Sales of hybrid cars more than doubled last month in South Korea on the back of the popularity of new compact sports utility vehicle Niro produced by Kia Motors Corp., industry data showed Sunday.A total of 6,215 units of Korean-made hybrid cars were sold in June, up 140 percent from 2,617 a month earlier, according to the data.The June figure marked a monthly sales record, outnumbering the previous record of 6,061 units tallied in April.Kia Motors' Niro is spearheading the popularity, with 3,24

July 3, 2016

Hyundai Motor keeps fourth spot in Brazil's auto market

SAO PAULO (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's top automaker, stayed at No. 4 in Brazil's auto market in the first half of this year, according to Brazil's main internet portal.Hyundai sold a cumulative 95,965 units in Brazil during the January-June period, accounting for 10.1 percent of Brazil's auto market, said UOL, the main internet portal in the South American country.U.S. carmaker General Motors Co. took the first spot with a 16.6-percent market share, followed by Fiat Chrysler Aut

July 2, 2016

End of tax cut casts shadow on H2 auto sales

[THE INVESTOR] The outlook for South Korea's automotive market in the second half of the year appears uncertain with the special tax cut ending as of July 1. The special consumption tax cut which was introduced to boost consumption ended on June 30. The government had cut the special consumption tax rate from 5 percent to 3.5 percent in August 2015 as a temporary measure. While the measure contributed to first half sales rise, its ending is expected to weigh down local carmakers in the second ha

July 1, 2016

GM Korea domestic sales set record in June

[THE INVESTOR] GM Korea’s monthly domestic sales climbed to a record high in June aided by rising sales of the city car Spark and midsized sedan Malibu, the company announced on July 1. The company’s figures showed that domestic sales came in at 18,058 units in June, rising 47.6 percent compared to the same month last year. The figure is the highest since GM Korea was established in 2002. Sales of the Malibu sedan more than tripled from a year ago to come in at 6,310 units, while Spark sales inc

July 1, 2016

Luxury imported cars stumped by tougher corporate vehicle rules

[THE INVESTOR] The sales of imported automobiles for corporate use has plunged this year, hamstringed by tougher regulations of corporate vehicles. Industry data showed on July 1 that the number of imported cars registered to corporations during the first five months of the year dropped 15.6 percent compared to the same period last year. The fall has been attributed to the regulation changes aimed at preventing corporate vehicles being used for personal purposes. From January to May, 33,071 impo

July 1, 2016

Sales of Kia cars in Mexico more than triple in less than 1 year

Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest carmaker, said Thursday that sales of its vehicles more than tripled in Mexico in May from nearly a year ago.Kia said it sold 4,610 units in Mexico in May, compared with 1,499 units in July last year when the carmaker began to sell its vehicles there.The carmaker said it sold a combined 18,200 units in the first five months of this year, accounting for a 3.1-percent share in Mexico's auto market.Kia said it expects to sell about 50,000 units and boo

July 1, 2016

Hyundai, Kia eye SUV expansion in US

[THE INVESTOR] Korea’s major automakers are set to strengthen their sport utility vehicle lineup in the US market, local news reported. Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, which currently sell four SUV models sold in the US, are planning to double the number by 2020, an industry insider was cited in the report. Against the rising demand for SUVs in the US, sales of Hyundai’s Santa Fe and Tucson in May jumped by 88 percent and 90 percent on-year in the country, respectively, while sales of Kia’s Sorent

July 1, 2016

Mando receives top European quality rating

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean auto parts maker Mando announced on June 30 that products manufactured at its plant in Poland were awarded the top quality rating by the European Foundation for Quality Management.Mando said that it is rare for EFQM to award the top rating in the first assessment, and this reflects the fact that there were no quality issues with the 1.6 million caliper brakes supplied to Volkswagen over the past year.Located in Walbrzych, Mando’s Polish operations began production in

June 30, 2016

Hyundai, Kia’s China market share show first on-year rise

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor Group’s share of the Chinese market rose in May from a year ago aided by rising SUV sales. According to industry data, the combined market share of Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors came in at 9.2 percent in May, rising 0.2 percentage points compared to the same month last year. The data showed that the two carmakers sold 150,450 units, excluding small commercial vehicles, in May. Compared to May 2015, the figure is an increase of 16.6 percent. Much of the rise was accoun

June 30, 2016

Combined market share by Hyundai, Kia edges up in China

The combined market share by Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. edged up in China in May from a year ago, industry data showed Thursday.Data compiled by the China Passenger Car Association showed that the two South Korean carmakers sold a combined 150,450 units in May, accounting for 9.2 percent share in the world’s largest auto market.The figures represent a 0.2 percentage point increase from a year earlier. It marked the first time that the combined market share by Hy

June 30, 2016

VW has no plans to compensate Korean consumers

[THE INVESTOR] With German automaker Volkswagen AG deciding to pay US owners of defective vehicles as much as US$ 10,000 per car, Korean consumers are furious over the lack of similar compensation measures for them.Volkswagen decided to pay a total of US$ 14.7 billion to settle emission cheating claims with owners of 475,000 affected vehicles in the US on June 28 (local time). In response to this settlement, Audi Volkswagen Korea reaffirmed that it has no plans to compensate Korean consumers, be

June 29, 2016

Prosecutors to summon ex-VW Korea chief on July 5

[THE INVESTOR] Prosecutors will summon Park Dong-hoon, former head of Audi Volkswagen Korea, on July 5, to question him over the automaker’s emission scandal. Seoul’s Central District Prosecutor’s Office on June 29 said it will bring Park as a key witness to the case over VW cheating pollution emissions test for defective units. During investigation, if prosecutors find out Park took part in the scandal or ordered others to manipulate documents of emission and noise level tests, his status could

June 29, 2016

Hyundai planning Genesis marque electric cars by 2020

[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor is planning to launch electric vehicles under its luxury marque Genesis in 2020.According to Hyundai Motor on June 29, the company plans to add electric cars to the Genesis lineup as part of its eco-friendly vehicle strategy. On June 29, a local daily reported that Hyundai Motor is eyeing the high-end electric vehicle market. Genesis G90.An unnamed high-level official of Hyundai Motor was quoted by a local daily as saying that the company is planning to launch high-p

June 29, 2016

Concerns grow for diesel-heavy Ssangyong

[THE INVESTOR] Ssangyong Motor is likely to be the most affected in sales by the increased public concern over diesel vehicle’s impact on air pollution, as well as the government’s push to curb diesel-fueled cars as part of measures to counter fine dust in the country, local news reported on June 28. From January to May this year, a total of 40,946 cars were sold by Ssangyong Motor, the Korean unit of Indian auto giant Mahindra & Mahindra. Among them, 31,237 units, or 76.3 percent, were diesel-f

June 29, 2016