Hyundai Motors based in Seoul, South Korea, was founded in 1967. Its founder Chung Ju-Yung also founded the Hyundai Engineering and Construction Company in 1947. Primarily known as a brand offering cost-effective vehicles, Hyundai is now among the top-selling car brands.
From underwhelming beginnings to technical innovation, Hyundai has come a long way. If you are a fan of all things Hyundai, read on to discover some interesting Hyundai fun facts.
Interesting Hyundai Facts
Following are some interesting facts about Hyundai to enhance your knowledge about the auto manufacturer.
Hyundai’s First Car Was Related To The Mini
Hyundai’s first-ever car was the Pony that was exported to Canada in 1984. The car’s development aspect was looked after by George Turnbull, former Managing Director of Austin Morris at British Leyland. Turnbull hired a few British designers and based the Hyundai Pony on the Morris Marina.
As history has it, the Marina wasn’t a great car it had poor suspension and handling. However, Giorgio Giugiaro of ItalDesign styled the Pony and unlike the Marina, its power technology was from Mitsubishi Motors. The car was a compact rear-wheel drive.
Hyundai Pony also known as Hyundai Excel, Hyundai Pony Excel and Hyundai X2 made it to the US market in 1986 ultimately. It was the first mass-produced and exported car from South Korea.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Hyundai Pony was a compact rear-wheel-drive based on the Morris Marina.
Hyundai offered Game-Changing Warranty
When Hyundai entered the US market, Hyundai Excel made a record of selling the most cars by a new brand in an opening year. However, this image soon seemed hazy owing to cost-cutting strategies used by the company. As a result, there were issues with the reliability of these cars.
The brand perception of Hyundai suffered massively. However, the automaker soon rectified this issue and started investing heavily in the design, quality, manufacturing, and longevity of its vehicles.
Then in 1992, Hyundai added two years or 38,625 km (24,000 miles) of free maintenance for all its new car models. That said, this wasn’t all, the real game-changer, was a 10-year or 1, 60,935 km (100,000 miles) powertrain warranty offered by Hyundai.
This won back the customer confidence and they started buying their favourite Hyundai vehicles with total peace of mind.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Hyundai Motors won back buyer confidence by employing a game-changing warranty plan.
Hyundai is the leading auto manufacturer in South Korea
A known Hyundai fact is that the automaker is South Korea’s leading automobile manufacturer. With its headquarter in Seoul, vehicles made by Hyundai Motors accounted for a whopping 41.5 percent of Korea’s automotive sales in 2020. Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Hyundai Motors is South Korea’s leading auto manufacturer.
World’s Biggest Automobile Manufacturing Facility
Another interesting Hyundai fact is that Hyundai’s factory in Ulsan, South Korea, is spread over 3.1 square miles. Hyundai is the largest auto manufacturer in South Korea producing almost 1.6 million vehicles every year.
The Ulsan facility is basically a city of 34,000 Hyundai workers. A strategic road network connects all five Hyundai plants together at the facility.
The five-factory vehicle producing complex also has a hospital, a fire station, a sewage treatment plant, docks with the capacity to house three 75,000 ton ships at the same time and a green park where workers can relax.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Hyundai’s Ulsan factory based in South Korea is the largest of its kind.
Commitment To Motorsport
Hyundai’s first entered motorsport in 1998 in the F2 class of the World Rally Championship. In addition to rallying, Hyundai is also renowned for touring car championships around the world. Hyundai Motorsports established in 2012 is responsible for all global motorsports activities.
The automaker sponsored noticeable sports events like the NFL draft, the Korea Football Association, UEFA, the FIFA World Cup and Olympique Lyonnais.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Hyundai Motorsport is responsible for the automaker’s global motorsports activities.
Fascinating History of The Name And Badge
Hyundai is a combination of two terms where Hyun stands for “modern” or “present,” and Dai means “era” or “generation.” The literal translation Hyundai in English would thus be “Hyeondae,” which means “modern times or modernity.”
Moreover, according to the brand’s website the slanted ‘H’ logo badge inside an oval is a stylized silhouette of two people shaking hands signifying trust and satisfaction between the company and the consumer.
The company’s slogan “New Thinking, New Possibilities” aligns with its message of modernity. For more details, read on to understand the meaning behind Hyundai’s logo.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: The italicized ‘H’ in Hyundai’s logo depicts two men shaking hands.
Hyundai’s Commitment To Hydrogen Power
In 2013, Hyundai launched a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle – the ix35. This was a hydrogen-powered Tucson and the first commercially mass-produced hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in the world.
Fast forward to 2021, today Hyundai is among global automakers committed to hydrogen fuel cell technology. Just like Toyota and BMW, Hyundai believes hydrogen fuel is going to become an important part of transport, whether it is for trucks and buses, passenger cars or industrial transport.
The fuel cell car by the automaker available in the UAE is Hyundai Nexo.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: The automaker’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicle available in the UAE at present is Hyundai Nexo.
Hyundai Is Working On a Walking Car Concept
Elevate – Hyundai’s walking concept car was first revealed in 2019 at CES as a smart mobility solution for crossing rough terrains. Then in 2021, Hyundai made headlines when it revealed a walking robot – TIGER X-1. This explains the automaker’s commitment to making the concept a reality.
It is expected that beta prototypes of Hyundai’s walking cars Elevate and Tiger X-1 are going to be ready for testing as early as 2023.
Hyundai fun facts takeaway: Both Hyundai’s walking cars can transform from four-wheel drive to a four-legged walking machine to traverse tough terrains.
Those were some interesting Hyundai facts. If you’re interested in buying a Hyundai vehicle, here is a list of used Hyundai cars for sale in the UAE.
Stay tuned to UAE’s top auto blog for more on car facts, Car DIY solutions and car repair tips among other auto topics.
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