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First peek inside Hyundai's hybrid Prius fighter

There are two new vehicle rumors that the auto industry can't seem to get enough of these days: "Tesla fighters" and "Prius fighters." The former category is filled up by Porsche and Audi and more. In the ranks of those who want to take on the world's best-selling hybrid, we can add Hyundai, but this time with a potential twist. First, let's take a look at the latest spy shots of the potentially 2017 model year gas-electric hybrid, including our first look inside. This car will be based on the next-generation Elantra that is also supposed to arrive in 2017. Rumor has it that a medium-sized lithium-polymer battery pack could offer 38 electric miles before the 1.6-liter engine takes over. The new hybrid will likely have a new name and could appear at an auto show at some point in 2016. We've seen other versions of this Prius fighter disguised in different camo. If you'd like to compare the vehicles, you can do so here and here (the latter shows modified Elantra GTs). Now, what about that twist? Well, alongside the standard gas-electric vehicle, it appears that Hyundai might also be working on an all-electric version of its "Prius fighter." Wearing the "AE" moniker, the all-electric version isn't guaranteed to arrive when the gas-electric car does, and may show up later, according to Green Car Reports. This all fits with Hyundai's promise, in 2014, to introduce a new all-electric car for the US market. We won't be surprised if it has wireless charging, too.

Hyundai US marketing chief steps down

For the past four and a half years, Hyundai's marketing efforts in America have been steered by Steve Shannon. But now the Korean automaker is going to have to find a new marketing guru, because Shannon has reportedly stepped down with apparently immediate effect.
A career automobile marketer, Shannon came to Hyundai early in 2011 after over a quarter century at General Motors, effectively switching places with Joel Ewanick and Chris Perry, who moved from Hyundai to GM the previous year.
During his 25 years in Detroit, Automotive News points out, Shannon worked with such brands as Buick, Oldsmobile, Saab and Hummer. He was particularly instrumental in launching the Saturn brand and served as executive director of marketing for Cadillac prior to moving to Hyundai.

For Hyundai, ZEV credit rules are working

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has been working on its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) plan since the early 1990s, so no one at Hyundai could act surprised when the automaker finally started selling enough vehicles to be affected by the rules around 2012. In fact, the company had lots of time to prepare for being reclassified as an Intermediate Volume automaker and the obligations to sell ZEV vehicles – fuel cell vehicles, electric vehicles, or plug ins – that come with that title. Today, Hyundai has more credits than it needs and no plans to sell them to other, less forward-looking automakers. "We are not in the business of buying or selling ZEV credits." - Mike O'Brien Anyone paying close enough attention will know that Hyundai has been working on hydrogen fuel cell technology since a little before 2000. O'Brien said that Hyundai's fuel cell program "predated regulation for us by more than a decade and a half." That's why the company is in good standing today. In the ZEV marketplace, the value of one ZEV credit is private information between those who sell them and those looking to buy. So, while we don't know how much money Hyundai's extra credits are actually worth, California does publish the credit balances, so we can at least know how many Hyundai has.The most recent seem to be from 2014, which are available here. That's when Hyundai had 896 ZEV credits, 4,825.71 "advanced technology partial zero-emission vehicles" (AT-PZEV) and 6,751.80 PZEV credits, but O'Brien said that, "We are not in the business of buying or selling credits. To my knowledge, there is nobody I know in this company that has investigated either the purchase or sale of ZEV credits." Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell in BeeZero Hydrogen Carsharing Program View 6 Photos Instead, Hyundai - like many other automakers - is generating its own credits by selling zero-emission vehicles to offset the vehicles it sells that are too dirty in the ZEV credit scheme. And the company's recent expansion of Tucson Fuel Cell sales into Northern California is likely a preview for the vehicle's availability in the Northeast. After all, that's where the next batch of H2 stations is due and O'Brien has said in the past the Hyundai will sell the vehicle where there's fuel. O'Brien said Hyundai is talking to the same hydrogen providers that competitors like Honda and Toyota are talking to (so, FirstElement Fuel), but is not ready to make any announcements about any infrastructure partnerships.