Hyundai, the South Korean automobile brand, is counted among one of the most popular auto manufacturers across the globe. It was originally founded in 1947 as a construction company and later in 1967 the automobile wing of the company was established. To date, the brand has been credited for rolling off performance-oriented vehicles with advanced safety features. The history of this brand encloses a number of interesting events that car enthusiasts must know about.
Let’s dissect these interesting events and the journey of the Hyundai in more detail.
Hyundai Motor Company Overview
The word Hyundai is a combination of two Korean words ‘Hyun’ which means ‘Modern’ and ‘Dai’ which means ‘Generation’. Combining both the words resulted in ‘Hyundai’ which means ‘Modern Times’.
This meaning becomes part of Hyundai brand values and hence, it provides vehicles equipped with modern features at an affordable price. The core elements of Hyundai’s lineup include refined styling, higher quality, advanced technology and equilibrium of price and features.
This makes Hyundai a popular brand across the globe. In fact, according to the annual used car market report 2021, Hyundai is ranked among the top-tier popular brands in the UAE.
Hyundai History Timeline
The following paragraphs will elaborate on Hyundai’s brand history and its innovation through the years.
Ulsan Assembly Plant and Initiation of Hyundai – 1960s to 1970s
Under the supervision of Hyundai’s founding chairman Chung Ju-Yung, the brand started manufacturing cars in 1967. The first ever vehicle of Hyundai was Cortina which was assembled in cooperation with Ford Motor Company. The car was a huge success and rapidly dominated the car market. Following the success of this model series, the brand established another model series ‘ Pony’ that was unveiled at the 1974 Turin Motor Show.
Hyundai marketed this car as ‘the car for the people’ which it really was. It was a compact coupe car with an RWD drivetrain system and other essential features, all of it at an affordable price. The vehicle served as a flagship model of Hyundai for years.
The Ulsan assembly plant was the secret ingredient of this initial success. The manufacturing plant was completed in 1967 which enabled Hyundai to assemble cars at a faster pace. It is an exciting fact about Hyundai that its Ulsan assembly plant is still considered one of the largest automobile assembling facilities with an annual production capacity of 1.6 million units.
Hyundai Debuted in International Market – 1980s
After launching two successful model series, Hyundai was all set to hit the international market. The first international expansion of Hyundai was in Great Britain in the year 1982. Hyundai started exporting its model series ‘Pony’ to Britain and it was the first South Korean car to be sold in the region.
After Britain, Hyundai also successfully expanded to Canada and USA. Hyundai makes history in the USA automobile market by selling 168,000 units of Pony Excel in its first year. During this time, Hyundai started working on other models including Hyundai Sonata. The brand also expanded to the UAE and currently, there are a number of Hyundai showrooms in the UAE serving to customers.
Experiments of Hyundai – the 1990s
In the 1990s, Hyundai achieved some major milestones and experimented with new technology. In the same era, Hyundai achieved the production mark of 4 million units. Whereas, in 1991, the brand successfully manufactured its first four-cylinder internal combustion engine which debuted in 1992 Hyundai Scoupe. Along with this, the brand also manufactures its transmission system.
This era is considered the time of a technological revolution in the Hyundai company’s profile. Along with advanced combustion engines, the brand also experimented with electric and hybrid vehicles.
The first electric car of Hyundai was the Sonata Electric Vehicle, it was a prototype manufactured in 1991. Along with this, a hybrid model series named FGV-1 was also unveiled by the brand at the 1995 Seoul Motor Show. Alongside electric and hybrid, conventional model series like Tiburin, Dynasty and Accent were also released in this decade. Go through Hyundai Sonanta history to learn about the previous generations of the iconic model.
By this time, Hyundai was determined to compete with the global brands in the international market. A research and development centre was established in Germany to cater to the latest technological innovations in the industry. The vision of becoming an international brand was also carried by the new chairman of Hyundai Motor Corporation Mong-Koo Chung appointed in 1999.
New Millennial New Hyundai – 2000s
The Hyundai was all set to create its image as a world-class brand in the new millennial. Significant developments were made in the design, quality and features of the Hyundai cars. In fact, Hyundai also established a European Design Centre in 2001 for further improvements.
Some of the most popular model series of this decade include Santa Fe. It was the first SUV of the brand and was well received by the users. This was followed by the launch of other models including Tucson, Hyundai i30 and the hybrid electric version of Sonata.
In 2007, the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Czech also became functional. 500 high-tech robots were used on the assembly line of this plant which was capable of producing 1500 cars each day.
Future Mobility of Hyundai – 2010
Since 2010, Hyundai has adopted a sustainable approach and has been working on manufacturing vehicles with reduced carbon footprint. This mission was initiated in the early 2010s with the launch of the Hyundai i10. The car was powered by an electric current stored in lithium-ion batteries that took 6 hours to get completely charged.
Hyundai archives another milestone of this mission by unveiling its hydrogen fuel cell car ix35. The vehicle was well received because of its long driving range, reduced refilling time and eco-friendliness. In 2016, Hyundai released the IONIQ model series which was one of its own kind.
The car offers three different electrified powertrains namely hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric. This successful model series was followed by the release of another all-electric model named Kona electric.
During this time, Hyundai also debuted in professional racing by unveiling its motor racing team.
Hyundai’s Vision- 2020s
For the near future, Hyundai is working on multiple eco-friendly modes of transportation. The brand has also paired up with leading companies in the energy sector to produce more advanced hydrogen-fuel cell cars. According to its vision, the company is working on increasing its fuel cell car production to 700,000 units by 2030. The concept of Hyundai’s walking car also surfaced in 2021. It is a car with robotic legs that can walk, climb and traverse terrains.
This was the complete Hyundai brand history. The whole history elaborates the focus of the brand on producing more futuristic vehicles with technologically advanced features. If you are also fascinated by these, browse through these used Hyundai cars for sale in the UAE and leverage all the signature features of Hyundai.
Stay tuned to UAE’s top auto blog for more information on Hyundai motor company history.
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