Category: Hyundai

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Hyundai

EXCLUSIVE: Unmasked Hyundai ix35 spotted in Sydney CBD

Hyundai ix35 spotted on Sydney's streets

Thanks to Jonathan, an eagle eyed AUSmotive reader, for sending in this spy shot of the yet to be released Hyundai ix35. The photo was taken in Sydney’s CBD and, looking at the car alongside fitted with camera rigs, it appears the ix35 SUV was being filmed for a television commercial or some promo footage. Click on the image above for a 1200px version.

The Hyundai ix35 is due for release at the upcoming IAA Frankfurt Motor Show in September and, until now, has only been spotted in deep camouflage or as a computer generated artist’s impression. The lower grille treatment and fog light detail seem to be the major differences from the predicted image published on the Hyundai Blog in July.

Looking to establish a more recognisable family face this photo represents one of the first undisguised looks at a production-ready example of Hyundai’s new hexagonal grille treatment.

Hyundai’s first teaser for the new Tucson replacement was given earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show with the release of the ix-onic concept. Courtesy of autoblog you can see a a YouTube clip below featuring the Hyundai designers talking about the ix-onic.

It is believed the ix35 will be powered by a mix of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines. The ix35 should also be one of the first cars from Hyundai to feature their new double clutch six speed transmission. The ix35, then, represents a bold move forward for Hyundai with big strides in both exterior design and mechanical technology.

For Australian readers, it is understood the car will go on sale here some time in 2010. Keep an eye out in the lead up to Frankfurt for more details.

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Honda Hyundai Kia Lotus Motor Shows Suzuki Toyota

MIMS 2009 – Best of the rest

2009 Melbourne International Motor Show

Here is one last wrap up of images from the media day at the 2009 Melbourne International Motor Show.

There’s pics from Honda (Insight, Civic Type R), Hyundai (i10 Blue, i30 Blue, Genesis Coupé), Kia (Soul), Lotus (Europa SE), Suzuki (Alto), Toyota (fully sik RAV4, fully sik Yaris, Hybrid Camry) and a few other bits and pieces, including the AutoHorizon FR-1, a charity-based project helping young kids.

So, what was the media day like? I have to say I was a bit nervous attending with a room full of battle-hardened journos around me. However, it was not really an issue and it was pretty cool moving around from stand to stand with nobody looking at me funny when I went up to various cars and opened them up, taking photos or just generally pushing and prodding around. Certainly a bit different, and better, than attending the show as a member of the general public.

Personally, I didn’t make the most of the networking opportunities on offer. Something I’m usually not good at, so I guess I’ll need to work on that.

Overall, though, it was a fun and valuable learning experience. It’s interesting seeing how many different ways there are to pull a cover off a car. Or not! My flight time meant I missed the presentations from Ford, Holden and Toyota, so maybe I missed a few new and innovative sheet pulling techniques!

Full marks to the catering, too, the Asian style lunch provided was very tasty, and after a few hours following Glenn Ridge around from presentation to presentation I was pretty damn hungry.

It was a long day, getting up at 4:30am to catch a plane from Canberra to Melbourne and not getting back to the hotel until 5pm. Before turning around and going back to the show as a casual observer with my wife.

I hope the coverage on AUSmotive has been interesting for all the readers out there and the audio clips provided on a few of the posts have brought you a bit closer to the action.

See you in Sydney in October 2010!

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Audi BMW Ford Holden Honda Hyundai Kia Mercedes-Benz MINI Mitsubishi News Nissan Toyota

Automotive industry supports Bushfire Appeal

Victorian Bushfires

Following the lead of Mercedes-Benz, two more manufacturers have donated cash towards the Victorian Bushfire Appeal.

Honda Australia, through its Honda Foundation, has pledged $200,000 to the cause. Joining Honda in today’s announcement is Nissan Australia and Nissan Motor Co. in Japan who will be offering a combined donation of $100,000.

Nissan Australia will also match donations made by its employees to the Australian Red Cross or Salvation Army. The company has also committed to a 100 vehicle loan fleet, allowing affected members of the public to apply for a free loan car, for a period of up to six months.

These announcements are a fantastic show of support and one would expect more manufacturers to follow in these very generous footsteps.

Where available, press statements from manufacturers are included after the jump.

UPDATE: Audi has made a “significant contribution” towards the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation which made a $1,000,000 donation earlier today.

Toyota has donated $100,000 to the Cricket Australia Bushfire Appeal. Ford also donated a Mondeo XR5 Turbo for auction, with all proceeds going to the appeal.

UPDATE 11 Feb: V8 Supercars have donated $100,000. (Source: The Australian)

BMW Group Australia has chipped in $100,000 plus other support.

UPDATE 12 Feb: News just in that Mitsubishi have donated $100,000 to the Appeal.

Holden has also come forward with a $152,000 (US$100,000) donation, via its GM Foundation, and a fleet of 300 loan cars available to bushfire victims for periods of 3-12 months. In addition to these pledges, Holden dealers nationawide have raised a further $200,000. (Source: news.com.au)

Update 13 Feb: The Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group announced last night that it is donating $300,000 towards the 2009 Victorian Bushfire Fund to assist individuals and communities affected by the devastating fires.

Image: sourced from The Boston Globe

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Hyundai introduces tamper proof identification labels

Hyundai tamper proof compliance label

In a bid to reduce the chances of vehicle re-birthing Hyundai has joined Audi, Nissan and Renault by introducing self-voiding vehicle identification labels. The labels are cheap to produce and will be rendered useless if removed from the car. The new labelling will replace the familiar aluminium compliance plates found on most other cars sold in Australia. The older style compliance plates are easily reused in a re-birthing industry that costs Australians around $250 million every year.

“Improved vehicle identification is a major focus of the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council” said NRMA Insurance Head of Research Robert McDonald, “vehicle identification technology such as self-voiding labels, cost less than $2 and are one of the best defences against professional car theft.”

Hyundai’s announcement follows the release yesterday of NRMA Insurance’s annual Vehicle Theft Ratings, which measure the ability of a car to resist being broken into, stolen and re-birthed. Hyundai’s Sonata was one of the top three performers in the medium car category, whilst the Grandeur scored the highest security rating in the large car category. Although the Vehicle Theft Ratings revealed that Subaru, BMW, Audi and Porsche were the standout manufacturers in 2008, with all of their vehicles performing well.

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