KG Mobility, China’s Chery to develop plug-in hybrids

KG Mobility, a South Korean sport utility vehicle maker, has teamed up with China’s Chery Automobile to co-develop a range of vehicles including plug-in hybrid cars to expand its global presence. According to a KG Mobility regulatory filing on Monday, the auto brand signed a platform technical license agreement with Chery Automobile on Friday to collaborate in areas as such the design and development of vehicles as well as car manufacturing and distribution. The deal includes sharing the i

Oct. 21, 2024

[Photo news] Double podium

Hyundai Motor said Monday that its racing teams picked up two wins at the 2024 World Rally Championship's 12th round of the Central European Rally and the 2024 TCR World Tour's sixth race in China over the past weekend. According to the automaker, Ott Tanak on Hyundai Motor's world rally team took the highest spot on the podium after he came out victorious with the brand's motorsports car i20 N Rally1 Hybrid. For the TRC race, Mikel Azcona on the BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse w

Oct. 21, 2024

Hyundai Motor to make EV in India

Hyundai Motor Group said Sunday it is set to launch its first electric vehicle in India, the electrified version of its popular sport utility vehicle Creta, in January next year, solidifying its top-tier position in the fast-growing automotive market. The Creta EV will be produced at the carmaker’s manufacturing plant in Chennai, southern India, which started operations in 1998. The company has recently pushed sales of SUVs, with the face-lifted three-row Alcazar SUV hitting the market in

Oct. 20, 2024

[Photo News] Kia's design exhibition

Hyundai Motor Group said on Friday that it will hold an exhibition to showcase Kia's design philosophy, "Opposites United," in Seoul starting Saturday. The automaker previously held a similar exhibition under the same theme at the Milan Design Week in northern Italy in April this year, drawing about 15,000 visitors for its seven-day run. Kia plans to offer various performances by collaborating with numerous artists at the exhibition, which will be held at Space S1 in Seongsu-dong

Oct. 18, 2024

Hyundai Motor, Toyota join forces for AI robot

Hyundai Motor Group and Toyota -- the world’s third and first top-selling auto giants, respectively -- have teamed up to advance the development of artificial intelligence and robotics. According to Hyundai-backed Boston Dynamics and Toyota Research Institute on Wednesday, the two sides decided to join forces to accelerate the development of general-purpose humanoid robots using the former’s two-legged Atlas robot and the latter’s large behavior models, or LBMs. “There ha

Oct. 18, 2024

Kia to start EV production in Slovakia by year-end

Hyundai Motor Group’s smaller affiliate Kia is poised to start electric vehicle production in Europe by the end of this year at its Slovakian manufacturing plant, according to Marc Hedrich, president and CEO of Kia Europe. “(I had a) very good meeting today with Slovakian Economy Minister (Madame) Denisa Sakova and State Secretary Vladimir Simonak,” stated Hedrich in a LinkedIn post on Wednesday. “I had the opportunity to discuss challenges the automotive industry is faci

Oct. 17, 2024

[Photo News] New Hyundai Casper

Hyundai Motor Company launched the new Casper, an upgraded model of the subcompact sports utility vehicle first released in 2021, in the Korean market on Friday. According to the automaker, the new Casper sports a stronger and more stylish design than the previous version while offering a wider range of safety features and convenient functions. The price for the new Casper, which is sold under the name Inster in overseas markets, is set to begin at 14.5 million won ($10,615). (Hyundai Motor Grou

Oct. 17, 2024

[Photo News] Rolls-Royce Cullinan with new Grille

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars introduced the refined Cullinan Series II and Black Badge Cullinan Series II in Korea on Thursday, with updates that hone the SUV’s reputation. The first-ever Illuminated Pantheon Grille lends a modern touch to the vehicle’s already iconic front fascia, enhancing its presence in low light. Inside, the new Duality Twill upholstery, made from bamboo-based rayon, features a unique natural texture and is intricately embroidered with up to 2.2 million stitches, taki

Oct. 17, 2024

Hyundai Mobis to build 1st EV power system plant in Slovakia

Hyundai Mobis, an auto parts manufacturer under Hyundai Motor Group, said Thursday that it signed an agreement with the Slovakian government to set up its first manufacturing plant for electric vehicle power systems in Europe. With a 350 billion won ($256.7 million) investment, Hyundai Mobis will construct a plant in the Novaky region of western Slovakia to produce EV drive units consisting of an electric motor, inverter and reducer. Once completed next year, the facility will have the capacity

Oct. 16, 2024

Hyundai, Kia develop 1st automatic system for press die design

Korea’s two leading auto brands -- Hyundai Motor Company and Kia -- announced Wednesday that they developed the world’s first automatic press die system for all designs. Press dies are used to form a vehicle’s body parts such as the trunk, hood and fender. Depending on the part’s design, automakers usually conduct the press dying process three to five times to manufacture a part while press die designers line up numerous requirements for the production of each part. Accor

Oct. 16, 2024

[Photo News] Maserati's first electric SUV

Maserati unveiled its first fully electric sport utility vehicle, the Grecale Folgore, in Korea on Wednesday, showcased in nero tempesta black (left) and dark aurora blue. Named after the Italian word for lightning, the Folgore is powered by CATL’s battery that provides up to 500 kilometers of range by Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure standards, with Korean certification still pending. It offers comparable performance to luxury electric SUVs like the Porsche Macan with 82

Oct. 16, 2024

LG wins $9.5b battery deal to power over 1m Ford electric vans

LG Energy Solution has landed its biggest deal of the year, partnering with Ford to supply 109 gigawatt-hours of batteries for the automaker's electric commercial vehicles through 2032. Announced on Tuesday, this long-term agreement will see LG providing enough battery power for over a million electric commercial vehicles, all manufactured at the company’s plant in Wroclaw, Poland. The batteries, expected to be a high-performance ternary pouch type, will be delivered over two periods

Oct. 15, 2024

[Photo News] Kia turns ocean trash into trunk liner

Kia has launched a special edition trunk liner for its EV3, crafted from recycled plastics gathered from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. This eco-friendly product, created in partnership with the Dutch nonprofit The Ocean Cleanup, is the first of its kind in the automotive industry. Made from 40 percent marine plastic, the liner features a unique pattern inspired by the nets used to capture plastic debris in turbulent waters. The limited edition accessory will be available in select markets, in

Oct. 15, 2024

Korea urged to enhance readiness for self-driving safety rules

South Korea should join the global movement to set safer international standards for autonomous driving systems, according to a report released by the state-run Korea Automotive Technology Institute on Monday. Cho Min-wook, senior researcher and author of the report, stated that the International Organization for Standardization and the auto industry are looking to adopt a more comprehensive approach that encompasses safety and security for Level 3 and more advanced self-driving systems. ISO is

Oct. 14, 2024

Fescaro chief stresses importance of software-based operation in future mobility

With the age of autonomous vehicles just beyond the horizon, software is becoming just as important as the nuts and bolts of an vehicle. Hong Seok-min, the CEO of Fescaro, which provides software solutions for future mobility, said "software-defined operation" is a key term in the automotive industry today and in the future. "Without a doubt, the keyword (in the mobility industry) is the software-defined vehicle. Designs of existing internal combustion vehicles are centered on t

Oct. 14, 2024

[Photo News] Mercedes for German embassy

Mercedes-Benz Korea said Monday that its all-electric vehicle EQS 450 4 MATIC has been selected as the official diplomatic car for the Embassy of Germany in the country. Ambassador Georg Schmidt underlined the German embassy’s commitment to continuously upgrading its mobility for sustainability in Korea. In this photo, Schmidt (left) and Mercedes-Benz Korea CEO Mathias Vait pose with the newly appointed EV. (Mercedes-Benz Korea)

Oct. 14, 2024

Renault, KG Mobility gain ground in midsize SUV market

Renault Korea and KG Mobility, the two underdogs in Korea where Hyundai and Kia cars dominate almost 90 percent of the market, are starting to edge in with their latest midsize sport utility vehicles. As consumer interest in smaller city cars declines, midsize SUVs are gaining popularity here, driven by increasing demand for larger, family-friendly vehicles and automakers’ focus on more profitable segments. According to September data from the Korea Automobile & Mobility Association, K

Oct. 14, 2024

[Photo News] Hyundai helps disabled

Hyundai Motor has donated two vehicles and 315 car seats for children to Hanlove, a welfare center for disabled people in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, to improve disabled children’s right to free mobility. According to the automaker, two Staria minivans -- one that has been redesigned to ease the on-boarding of wheelchairs with a simple mechanism and the other tailored to fit the physicals of children better than the original model -- were delivered to the welfare center on Friday. (Hyundai

Oct. 14, 2024

Chung marks 4 years at helm of Hyundai Motor

Hyundai Motor Group is celebrating four years of Chung Euisun’s leadership as executive chair on Monday. During this period, the automaker has experienced rapid growth, expanded into new markets and positioned itself as a major player in electric vehicles and future technologies. But new challenges lie ahead, particularly in software, robotics and urban air mobility. When Chung officially took over in 2020, Hyundai and its sister brand, Kia, were solid players but not exactly leaders in th

Oct. 13, 2024

Posco Future M's NCA cathode plant in Pohang goes online

Posco Future M has started operations at its new plant in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, dedicated to producing nickel-cobalt-aluminum cathode materials for electric vehicle batteries. The plant, which shipped its first batch over the weekend, will help meet the growing demand for high-performance EV battery components. NCA cathode materials, with 88 percent nickel content, are key for making EV batteries more efficient. In January 2023, Posco Future M secured a 40 trillion won ($29.6 bill

Oct. 13, 2024