Popular Package Bluetooth Phone System Xm Usb Port Aux Input Cruise Control on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Hyundai will launch Genesis brand in December

Hyundai is about to go global with a new, high-end sub-brand called Genesis. Rumors of this spinoff have been swirling for years, but an announcement Tuesday confirms that the Genesis brand will launch in December of this year. "To elevate and differentiate the Genesis brand from Hyundai, a distinct design identity, emblem, naming structure, and customer service offering is being established," the automaker said in a statement. A Korean report states that Genesis will kick off with a new version of the Equus, set to launch next month, called G90. The rest of the lineup will follow suit with that naming structure (Infiniti isn't using it anymore, after all). The Genesis sedan as we know it will be called G80, and a new midsize model will be G70. A luxury SUV and sport coupe will round out the range, and all six models will launch by 2020. The rear-wheel-drive, midsize sedan is expected to debut in the second half of 2017. In order to properly create an identity of its own, Hyundai is creating the Prestige Design Division. Beginning in mid-2016, this group will be lead by Luc Donckerwolke, who was formerly responsible for design at several Volkswagen Group brands, including Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Seat, and Skoda. Hyundai Motor Group's chief design officer, Peter Schreyer, will oversee the work of Donckerwolke's new division. Genesis will initially launch in North America, China, Korea, and the Middle East. Hyundai says it will expand to Europe and other parts of Asia as Genesis grows. "The Genesis models will provide technological innovation, excellent driving performance and luxury to customers. Every Genesis model will be created with the needs of our customers in mind, so the resulting car will perfectly meet their needs without any unnecessary burden or excess," said Woong-Chul Yang, vice chairman of Hyundai Motor. Hyundai's full announcement can be found here, or in the press release below.

Hyundai-Kia claims 'greenest' title from Honda, Big Three still big losers

Let's start with the good news. On average, any new car you buy in the US today will be 43 percent cleaner than any average new car in 1998. Here's some more good news, for Korea anyway, Hyundai-Kia has been named the cleanest automaker in the latest study by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), which looked at 2013 model year vehicles sold between October 2012 and September 2013 from the top eight automakers (by volume). The bad news? The big three Detroit automakers are, on average, still making the dirtiest cars in the showroom. The big three Detroit automakers are, on average, still making the dirtiest cars in the showroom. The problem for Ford, General Motors and Chrysler lies in their trucks, which sell well but tend to have pretty bad fuel economy (compared to sedans, at least). The UCS calculates its list by averaging "the per-mile emissions for each light-duty vehicle sold by each automaker" and then factors in "the fuel economy, fuel type, and sales volume of each type of vehicle sold by each automaker" and "the upstream global warming emissions from producing and distributing the fuel used by each vehicle, as well as emissions from the vehicles themselves." That all means that, the more trucks you sell, the worse you're gonna do. Then again, the more trucks you sell with 18 mpg, the more you're helping drivers put CO2 into the air, so the UCS is doing a fair comparison of the things that this study is trying to track. More details on the methodology are available on page six of the study PDF. In case you were wondering (we were), UCS did make sure to use the revised mpg numbers for Hyundai and Kia models that were originally overstated. Hyundai has apologized for and fixed those figures and even with the new, corrected numbers, Hyundai's total emissions are dropping at a rate of about three percent a year, enough for it to take the greenest company title for the first time. In fact, this is the first time that an automaker other than Honda has come out on top in the UCS ranking, which has been released six times now, including the first one in 2000 (which looked at 1998 model year data). In 2010, Honda was almost knocked off the winner's perch by both Hyundai and Toyota, but managed to hold on. Chrysler, on the other hand, came in dead last (again) in the ranking of the top eight automakers, snagging the "dirtiest tailpipe" award once (again). Read the UCS' press release below.

Hyundai Sonata PHEV will go 27 miles on electric power

The Hyundai Sonata Plug-in Hybrid will have an all-electric range of 27 miles. That will make it the second-highest among US plug-in hybrids, after the Chevrolet Volt. The Volt is technically an extended-range plug-in, according to Chevy, but we feel fine comparing the two here. Either way, the Hyundai beats out the 19-mile all-electric range of Ford's two plug-in hybrids and the paltry 11 miles of the Prius Plug In. The good news is that the Sonata's numbers are a bit better than previously expected. The plug-in hybrid was forecast to be able to go 24 miles on electricity alone. The Sonata PHEV also delivers 202 but, though, as well all know, range drops precipitously if you're shooting to use all of them horses at once. The seventh-generation Sonata body style is also sleeker and delivers better aerodynamics. No word on how much the PHEV will cost yet, but it will go on sale in the US this fall. And while the Sonata PHEV will technically available for Hyundai dealers to stock in all 50 states, if you live outside of California or the nine states that follow its zero-emissions vehicles rules, you will need to special order the vehicle. Based on the US Department of Energy's Fueleconomy.gov site, the Sonata PHEV's miles-per-gallon-equivalent rating of 99 beats out that of the Ford Fusion Energi and C-Max PHEVs but trails the Chevrolet Volt's. Again, the Sonata came in with better numbers than we previously thought, as it was expected to have a 93 MPGe rating. You can read our First Drive of the Sonata Plug-in Hybrid here. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Hybrid: First Drive View 20 Photos News Source: US Department of Energy via Hybrid CarsImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Sebastian Blanco/AOL Green Hyundai Hybrid PHEV mpge ev range hyundai sonata plug-in hybrid sonata plug-in hybrid