Hyundai is apparently serious about constructing hybrid cars.
To prove the point, the Digital Chosunilbo reports that the Korean automaker gave a tour last month of its research center in Namyang, South Korea.
Currently, the Japanese carmakers Honda and Toyota control more than 90 percent of the world market in hybrid cars. Hyundai, on the other hand, is just getting started and is testing and producing vehicles for the Korean government use.
But Hyundai is coming up fast. (Or it likes to think so.) Lee Ki-sang, the director of Hyundai's hybrid vehicle development team, announced that he sees a good future for Korean hybrid cars. In fact, he boasted that Hyundai can create a hybrid car "way better than Honda's" by 2009. He claims that Korea has battery manufacturers who are supposed to be in the world's top ten as well as advanced electronics technology.
Hyundai says that it plans to produce 3,390 hybrid cars for the government by 2008. Plans call for it to start commercial sales of its Avante hybrid in 2009, which is expected to be sold in Korea and the United States.
Our take? Hyundai started developing hybrid cars in 1997. But it didn’t get very far because it didn’t take the concept seriously. Why? Because it thought the hybrids would be quickly replaced with hydrogen fuel cell cars. Now the company is serious because of the success of the Japanese hybrids and because of new emission standards being considered in Europe and North America.
Right now the biggest concern for Hyundai is the cost of the vehicle. Apparently, the automaker is currently having problems getting parts like motors, inverters and batteries as cheaply as the Japanese auto makers. (Sounds familar?) That's why it wants all components made in Korea by 2009.
Stay tuned. It is really going to get competitive in the hybrid division what with the Chevrolet Volt and others soon to come out into the market. And what about the Chinese and the Indians? Will they stand pat or will they jump into the hybrid fight too?