"10 Secrets to Hyundai Kia Motors' Success"... Featured in German Automotive Magazine Special Edition

Design, Durability, Eco-friendly Technology, and High-performance Vehicle Driving Performance Highlighted

Hyundai i30 Fastback N and Kia Ceed (Photo by Hyundai Kia Motors)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] A renowned German automotive magazine published a special feature article introducing the success factors of Hyundai Kia Motors. The publication cited design, durability, and eco-friendly technology as key elements of success, stating that Hyundai Kia Motors is threatening not only European mass-market brands but also premium brands.

According to Hyundai Motor Company on the 1st, the German automotive magazine "Auto Motor und Sport (AMS)" identified ten success factors for Hyundai Kia Motors in its 18th issue published last month: ▲design ▲durability ▲high-performance vehicle driving performance ▲eco-friendly technology ▲usability ▲warranty period ▲convenience ▲price ▲Europe-specific technology development and production ▲sports marketing. This special feature article is based on AMS's 22 comprehensive car comparison evaluations conducted independently from last year through July this year, in which Hyundai Kia Motors ranked first nine times. Hyundai Kia vehicles received positive evaluations for interior space, ease of operation, quality, and basic convenience features.

AMS revealed that in its annual 'Best Car' survey conducted among readers, 25% of Kia customers and 20% of Hyundai customers decided to purchase a car based on its design. It added, "We hope that Hyundai's Prophecy and Kia's Imagine by Kia will not remain concept cars but will be produced as mass-production vehicles."

The article also conveyed that Hyundai Kia's new cars undergo rigorous testing at the N?rburgring test center in Germany, providing customers with trust through outstanding durability. Hyundai Kia Motors established a test center at the N?rburgring in 2013 and conducts harsh durability tests through 10,000 km of driving. Hyundai Kia explains that driving 10,000 km on the N?rburgring is equivalent to 180,000 km on regular roads.

Additionally, Hyundai Kia's high-performance vehicles were praised for delivering driving pleasure with optimized suspension and efficient powertrains. Particularly, the Hyundai i30 N and Kia Stinger received favorable reviews. The i30 N threatens competitor Volkswagen Golf GTI with its powerful performance and is reportedly so popular in Germany that it accounts for 25% of total i30 sales.

Hyundai's hydrogen electric vehicle 'Nexo' and electric vehicle 'Kona Electric' (Photo by Hyundai)

Regarding eco-friendly technology, AMS reported that the Hyundai Kona Electric exceeded the European standard driving range of 484 km on a single charge by achieving 536 km in AMS's own test drive. It also noted that Hyundai is expanding its hydrogen fuel cell technology from the Nexo to commercial vehicles.

The warranty period and price were also highlighted. According to AMS, Hyundai and Kia have been offering warranty periods of 5 years and 7 years respectively in Europe since 2010. The warranty period for Hyundai's eco-friendly vehicles, Ioniq and Kona Electric, is 8 years. It was also mentioned that at that time, European and Japanese brands only offered warranty periods of 2 to 3 years. Furthermore, reasonable pricing compared to luxurious materials and various convenience features was cited as a strength.

Meanwhile, despite the decline in the European automotive market due to the spread of COVID-19, Hyundai Kia Motors performed well by recording double-digit sales growth in July compared to the previous month. In July, Hyundai sold 41,255 units, a 26.7% increase from the previous month, and Kia sold 45,168 units, a 30.4% increase. In the first half of this year, Hyundai Kia achieved a market share of 6.9% in Europe, the highest since its market entry. Hyundai maintained a 3.4% share, the same as the previous year, while Kia increased its share by 0.3 percentage points to 3.5%.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.