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2017 Hyundai Equus spied testing in the Arctic Circle

The camouflaged next-generation Hyundai Equus has been picked off everywhere from South Korea to Colorado to Sweden, and our spy shooters caught it again in the Arctic Circle. The second generation, unveiled in 2010, continued to raise the luxury tide for the brand and it looks like the third generation will do the same again. Outside we predict another evolution of the brand's Fluidic Sculpture design under the eye of head designer Peter Schreyer, but this version will go in a direction that looks like it will be known only by its details; the side window opening, at least, has gone totally conservative, but we're told the are some very slick headlights up front and a "chrome-rich front fascia." Underneath, it will lose weight by being built on a lightweight derivation of the current BH platform that includes more high-strength steel and aluminum. The 5.0-liter V8 will get more power and better fuel economy, and rumors are that the 3.3-liter V6 could eventually play a role here with some forced induction assistance. An eight-speed transmission might come with its launch next year, but a ten-speed transmission is on the way, working in RWD and AWD guises. Related Video:

Sonata, Elantra driving down Hyundai quality scores

Hyundai was the butt of many jokes in the auto industry when it first entered the US market, but since then, it has forged ahead and built cars that stand with the best in their respective segments. The 2011 Sonata and 2011 Elantra were seen as the apotheosis of the brand's forward progress when they were introduced, but falling J.D. Power and Associates Dependability Study results may actually cause them to hurt the company's hard-earned reputation.
J.D Power's study examines three-year-old vehicles for problems per 100 vehicles. Since the 2011 study for 2008 model year cars, Hyundai has fallen from 10th overall with 132 problems to 27th in the 2014 survey of 2011 model year vehicles with 169 problems. It was also Hyundai's second consecutive year of an increase in reported problems. According to Automotive News, many of these problems are due to faults with the Sonata and Elantra, but J.D. Power didn't identify specifically what issues caused Hyundai's dependability to tumble so far down the list. However, the study found that, on average, reliability fell throughout the industry for the first time since 1998.
Getting the Sonata and Elantra right are vital to Hyundai. In 2013, they were the company's best-selling cars. "We'll be closely going through the data to see where improvements need to be made. Hyundai's goal is nothing short of quality leadership, and the report shows we have work to do," Hyundai spokesperson Jim Trainor said in an email to Autoblog.

IED PassoCorso concept is a student-designed Hyundai we can get behind

Sometimes the best ideas come from fresh eyes, and a group of design students from Istituto Europeo di Design - better known as IED - are out to prove that sentiment with this striking Hyundai PassoCorto concept. This two-seat thesis project of the Master of Arts in Transportation Design program for the Turin, Italy school will be officially unveiled at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show beginning March 4.
The concept is said to be 161 inches long, 74 inches wide and 45.7 inches tall. It rides on a 96.5-inch wheelbase, which makes sense since passo corto means "short wheelbase" in Italian. The engine is tipped to be a mid-mounted, twin-turbo, 1.6-liter four-cylinder pumping out 266 horsepower. Judging by these images, we think the design looks fantastic, with all those sharp lines and creases drawing to a point in the rear. It shows a wonderful balance of being wild enough to draw attention, yet it almost looks realistic enough for the road.
The styling comes from 16 IED students coordinated by Luca Borgogno, lead designer for fabled Italian design house Pininfarina. The students were given a design brief by Hyundai to create a vehicle aimed at young, connected people like them. All of the students submitted a proposal, and two were selected to be merged together in a final look. The entire class contributed to bringing the design to full scale. Scroll down to get the full scoop on the little sports car concept.