[Report] Hyundai Motor and Kia's US Success Secret Found in the 'Valley of Death' Invested with 80 Billion Won

Driving an Electric Car Across the Mohave Desert
Visiting the California City Test Track in the US...
Land Purchased for About 40 Billion KRW
400 Billion KRW for Wildlife Relocation
10.3 km High-Speed Track
Various Extreme Environments Simulated
Optimal Conditions for Performance Testing

On the 11th (local time), in the Mojave Desert, California, USA. Around California City, which is a two-hour drive from the metropolitan Los Angeles, there is nothing but sand. What can be seen are thorny bushes, desolate mountains in the distance, and the sky. Driving an electric car on a winding track placed in the middle of the desert. Sand and gravel scattered on the road surface hit the vehicle's front windshield as it passes by. There is no growling engine sound, but it is a unique experience to glide over the desert in a quiet electric car. The length of the high-speed circuit at Hyundai Motor Company and Kia's Mojave Desert test track is 10.3 km. It is more than twice as long as the domestic Namyang Research Center's (4.3 km) test track. Even at the maximum speed of 200 km/h, it takes 3 minutes to complete one lap. It is possible to test vehicle performance to the extreme in the vast nature.

A view of Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Mohave Test Track located in California City, California, USA [Photo by Hyundai Motor Company]

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia purchased 5.35 million pyeong (17.7 million square meters) of land inside the Mojave Desert in 2005 for 30 million dollars (about 40 billion won). Wild animals originally living on this land, such as desert tortoises, foxes, and coyotes, had to be relocated to other places. The cost of relocating the animals was as much as the land acquisition cost. Hyundai Motor Company and Kia invested a large amount of money to establish a test site in this area because it can simulate various extreme natural environments. This place, called the "Valley of Death," is famous as a place where automakers from around the world gather to test vehicle durability.

All Hyundai Motor Company and Kia models released in the United States are tested here. The Mojave Desert experiences hot and dry weather with ground temperatures rising up to 54 degrees Celsius, and sudden snow or rainstorms may also occur. This means it has the best conditions to test vehicle performance under different conditions every day throughout the four seasons. The Mojave test track has 12 different test facilities, including a high-speed circuit, noise test track, off-road test track, tilt test track, and saltwater corrosion test track.

The Ioniq 5N running on the high-speed circuit within the Hyundai Motor and Kia Mohave Test Track located in California City, California, USA.
[Photo by Hyundai Motor]

Recently, the nature of the test track has also changed to match the trends of the U.S. automobile market. In the past, the main program was heat endurance testing focused on internal combustion engines, but now the scope has expanded to include electric vehicle driving and durability tests, as well as harsh off-road tests mainly for sport utility vehicles (SUVs).

Electric vehicles weigh more than internal combustion engine vehicles by over 300 kg because they are equipped with large and heavy batteries. It is essential to check whether the suspension, tires, and body can withstand the heavy load. Battery thermal management is also a key checkpoint. The critical point is to maintain the battery temperature below 60 degrees Celsius even in harsh driving environments.

At the Mojave test track, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia conduct tests only on days when the temperature is above 45 degrees Celsius and solar radiation exceeds 1000 W per square meter. By selecting harsh days and concentrating tests, they aim to evaluate the thermal management and cooling performance of electric vehicles. On the high-speed circuit over 10 km long, they assess the electric vehicle's high-speed driving stability, power performance, wind noise, and road friction noise, pushing the performance and durability of electric vehicles to the extreme.

The GV70 electric vehicle is being tested for performance on 'Malbalgup-ro' within the Hyundai Motor and Kia Mohave Driving Test Center located in California City, California, USA.
[Photo by Hyundai Motor]

The durability test track had small bumps embedded on the road surface. This is to simulate the effect of driving on a rough gravel road. This track is so severe that driving about 10,000 miles (16,000 km) on it can have the effect of driving 100,000 miles (160,000 km). For electric vehicles with batteries mounted on the vehicle floor, durability evaluation against underbody impacts is essential. Hyundai Motor Company and Kia conduct about 500 runs per model on the durability test track.

The off-road test track is a course that fully utilizes the desert terrain. I drove Kia's internal combustion engine SUV, the four-wheel-drive Sorento, on a bumpy unpaved road. Although the car jolted, it was able to easily escape from a deep pit even in an extreme situation where only two wheels touched the ground. When the Mojave test track was first established, there was only one off-road test track, but now it has increased to seven courses. This is to strengthen off-road performance in line with the global SUV trend.

Rock test road within Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Mohave driving test site located in California City, California, USA
[Photo by Woo Su-yeon]

Last year, based on U.S. market sales volume, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia ranked 4th in the industry. Their sales volume has closely approached the dominance of the U.S. market big three: Toyota, General Motors (GM), and Ford. Behind this is the significant impact of localizing all vehicle development processes from product planning, design, and engineering to testing and verification. By establishing a localized R&D system centered on the Hyundai Motor North America Technical Center (HATCI), they shortened development periods and increased production at local factories. This laid the foundation to understand market trends and launch new vehicles faster. Lee Seung-yeop, Deputy Director of Hyundai Motor HATCI, said, "Currently, 80% of passenger cars released in the North American market are SUVs or pickup trucks, so almost all vehicles are expected to have off-road driving capabilities," adding, "At the Mojave test track, various environmental test sites are installed to thoroughly verify vehicles at each development stage."

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