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Hyundai testing Sprinter-style commercial van

Commercial vehicle sales are a key component to the success of many automakers, and in its persistent drive to become one of the largest in the world, it's a segment Hyundai can't very well ignore. But while it offers the i800 and H-series vans overseas, it hasn't offered anything bigger than a Tucson or Santa Fe in North America since the demise of the Entourage and Veracruz. That could all change in the near future, however, if these latest spy shots are anything to go by.
Pictured undergoing testing in Europe, this Hyundai commercial van prototype looks to be about the size of a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter or Ram ProMaster. There's little we can tell from these disguised spy shots at the moment, other than to note that this Hyundai is big and has small wheels, in typical European van style. We can't even tell if this is front-, rear- or all-wheel drive.
Of course, we have no indication at this point whether the van pictured here will make the transatlantic voyage to American showrooms. But with Mercedes having led the Euro van charge with the aforementioned Sprinter, and with the likes of Ford, Ram and Nissan all following suit, it seems possible. However, between the upgrades to service departments often necessary to accommodate such large vehicles and the sales retraining necessary to court commercial truck customers, doing so wouldn't simply be a plug-and-play operation - it would undoubtedly take a great deal of effort and money.

Hyundai, union reach tentative labor deal

According to Reuters, South Korea's labor unions may have reached a tentative deal with Hyundai following a compromise between the two sides on wages. Workers have staged a number of stoppages since August 20, which have cost the South Korean giant 1.02 trillion won - around $1.1B US. It also represents just over 50,000 units of production. That vehicle total sounds like a lot, but it's a small enough figure that Hyundai can apparently catch up with weekend and overtime shifts. We'd wager that this is why US inventories haven't been hit quite so hard aside from the battering already taking place. The proposal will now go before the union's rank and file.
If ratified, the new agreement will see workers getting a 5.14-percent raise in base salaries, along with 8.5-million-won (roughly $7,800) bonuses. Those concessions are a far cry compared to what the union was initially demanding, though. Early proposals included a 56.25-gram gold medal for each employee (worth about $2,400) and a 10-million won bonus (about $9,100) for employees whose children chose not to attend college. The union also sought a bonus worth two months' salary for workers that have been with the company for over 40 years, but this was negotiated down to a flat rate of six-million won ($5,464).
Based on Reuters' report, the work stoppages must have taken a real toll on Hyundai - its domestic sales dropped 20 percent last month, while exports were down nine percent. Those startling figures must have put some fire under the Hyundai bargaining team.

Hyundai Virtual Guide is an owner's manual for your phone

The owner's manual for the 2015 Hyundai Sonata is more than 700 pages. In fact, owner's manuals in general are so unwieldy – both by weight and actual use – that the problem you're having must be greater than the hassle of dealing with the instruction guide. Hyundai wants to make that easier with its Virtual Guide, an augmented reality app for smartphones and tablets that puts answer to the most common points of confusion at your fingertips. Once you open the app you start by choosing your exact vehicle trim. There are 16 different trim and package options for the Sonata, all of them have been scanned so that the app can show your specific car and features. After that there are several options that allow different means of getting the info you need. Point your phone's or tablet's camera at the engine bay, the app will overlay the locations of items like the air cooler, battery, and dispstick. Press any of the boxes in the display and the app will take you step-by-step through the process of attending to each system. There's another AR overlay for the interior. One neat feature that isn't AR is a picture of the gauge cluster and all of its Christmas tree lights. Press any one of them and the app will explain what the light means and what to do when it appears. Another portion of the app is pictures of every angle of the car with highlightable areas that provide more info on things like seat operation and what's in the trunk. Audi has an augemented reality app called eKurzinfo in the UK for three of its models, but it appears that Hyundai is the first mainstream maker in the US to provide such technology. Virtual Guide is available for the Sonata now at the Apple App Store and Google Play. Other models will join the Guide as Hyundai gets more of its models scanned. The videos and the press release below have more information. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. HYUNDAI VIRTUAL GUIDE INTRODUCES AUGMENTED REALITY TO THE OWNER'S MANUAL - First Mainstream Automaker to Launch 2D/3D Owner's Manual for Smartphones and Tablet Computers - Hyundai Virtual Guide Provides Convenient, Simple Ways to Become Familiar with Full Vehicle Capabilities LOS ANGELES, Nov. 10, 2015 – Later this year, Hyundai will be the first mainstream automaker to launch an augmented reality owner's manual app.