Despite SsangYong Motor’s decision to go ahead with a self-rescue plan after its largest shareholder Mahindra & Mahindra scrapped the cash-strapped Korean unit last week, some experts say the South Korean automaker’s weak exports may have led to the latest crisis. On Friday, Indian auto empire Mahindra & Mahindra said it won’t invest 500 million won ($410 million) for a turnaround, as requested, considering the global economic downturn due to COVID-19.  The pare

Mobility April 8, 2020

Kia Motors’ mid-sized sports utility vehicle Sorento means a lot to the automaker, considering that its SUV lineup ranging from Niro to Mohave has begun to receive attention with popularity of Sorento. The first Sorento was launched in 2002, with the third generation of the car released in 2014. Six years later, an all-new Sorento was unveiled on March 17. The Korea Herald had the chance to test drive the fourth-generation Sorento on March 23 on a 25 kilometer route from Yeouido in Seou

Mobility April 7, 2020

South Korea’s used car market has doubled in size over the past decade, with about 3.7 million vehicles registered for transfer last year.  With tech advancements, cars can be analyzed and auctions are made online, inviting more customers to sell and purchase secondhand cars. As the market grew, so did the market for imported cars, which are much coveted in the second-hand market. According to the country’s largest second-hand car company SK Encar, about 26 percent of used c

Mobility April 6, 2020

Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra has rejected a call for fresh funding for its cash-strapped Korean unit SsangYong Motor, leaving its future uncertain after 12 consecutive quarters of losses.  According to the board of directors of Mahindra, which has a 74.65 percent stake in Ssangyong, they held a special meeting in Mumbai on Friday and decided to reject SsangYong Motor’s request to invest 500 billion won ($404 million) over the next three years. Instead, it urged the Korean

Mobility April 5, 2020

Korean air carriers that have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic are undergoing restructuring to downsize the workforce amid continued losses from reduced passengers and suspensions of international routes, according to industry sources on Thursday. Eastar Jet, a local budget carrier that halted all services from March 23 for a month, said Thursday it will send 45 percent, or 750 employees, of its total workforce home from April 24.  The air carrier said it will first receive applica

Mobility April 2, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group said Tuesday that it would open a mobility innovation center in Singapore to focus on developing and producing future mobility solutions by 2022.  The automaker’s new global lab called Hyundai Mobility Global Innovation Center in Singapore (HMGICs) will be located in Singapore’s Jurong Innovation District, an advanced technology manufacturing hub comprised of tech companies, factories and researchers. The establishment of the automaker’s lab over the

Mobility March 31, 2020

South Korea’s Kumho Tire said Monday that its Solus 4S HA32 has won the Red Dot Design Award 2020. According to the tire maker, Solus HA32 is specially designed for road conditions in Europe, offering stable driving performance and brake in all four seasons.  By applying high-tech materials and V-shape pattern, Solus HA32’s brake function has improved by 15 percent compared to the previous model, the company said.  Its 3D inter-locking system also makes it easier for a

Mobility March 30, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group said Monday it has launched the third-generation G80 of its luxury brand Genesis.  The latest model has been fully revamped and is 125 kilograms lighter compared to the second-generation model that was launched in 2016, by using aluminum materials.  The all-new G80 is wider by 35 millimeters and lower by 15 millimeters, to show the best proportion as a rear-wheel driving luxury sedan, the automaker said.  Genesis sedans’ signature crest front grille,

Mobility March 30, 2020

Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae, who was reelected as executive director of Hanjin KAL over the objections of many, including his own sister, faces the challenge of proving his leadership capabilities by reviving Korean Air at a time when it is devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic amid ongoing management disputes. On Sunday, Cho said in a statement that the firm will “focus all its capabilities” and “make painstaking self-rescue efforts” to overcome the fallout from th

Industry March 29, 2020

Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae was reappointed as executive director of Hanjin KAL, the holding company of Hanjin Group that owns Korean Air, on Friday, a much anticipated result despite a monthslong tug-of-war with his sister Cho Hyun-ah over the management control. According to Hanjin KAL, Cho garnered 56 percent approval during the shareholders meeting held at Hanjin KAL headquarters in Seoul on Friday. About 43 percent were against him holding the post.  Despite concerns to mainta

Mobility March 27, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group said Friday that it has promoted Kia Motors Vice President Song Ho-sung to president and appointed Jochen Paesen to lead Kia Motors’ interior design team as a director. The company said the latest executive reshuffle is to execute the company’s future mobility vision and bring change to the current leadership.  President Song had previously led the automaker’s export sales, European sales and global business management teams, the company said. He is

Mobility March 27, 2020

Hyundai Motor Group said Friday that it has completed the establishment of a 50:50 joint venture with the US software developer of autonomous vehicles Aptiv. The headquarters of the joint venture will be set up in Boston, Massachusetts, and it will run research centers in both the US and Asia, the company said, adding that the company mission will be announced in the near future. In September last year, Hyundai Motor Group clinched a deal with Aptiv, formerly known as Delphi, for a $4 billion

Mobility March 27, 2020

Hyundai Mobis said Thursday that its air bag that ejects out from the sunroof has been evaluated and shared by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The first kind to be invented in the world, according to the firm, the roof air bag is unfolded when a vehicle is flipped over during an accident. It can cover the entire roof in 0.08 seconds, aimed at protecting passengers inside the car from being ejected out of the sunroof. The new system involves 24 patented technologies and h

Mobility March 26, 2020

Hyundai Motor said Thursday its steady-selling sedan Avante’s latest model has received 10,058 preorders on the first day of reservation. The number is double the average monthly sales figure of Avante, as well as nine times more than the preorders for sixth-generation Avante, the company said.  It is also beats the past preorder record of the first-generation Avante -- which was named Elantra. The automaker said the number is meaningful amid the sharply falling consumer demand fo

Mobility March 26, 2020

Pablo Rosso, president and managing director of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Korea, has been appointed as the 13th chairman of the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, according to the association on Wednesday.  He will be the first foreign chairman and serve a two-year term from April.  The association said that Rosso’s wide understanding and experience in the imported car industry had been considered to solve the tasks the industry now faces. “The i

Mobility March 25, 2020