Hyundai News & Blogs

While the rest of the Elantra lineup hardly falls into the gas-guzzler realm, Kia is bolstering its econo push for 2010 with the introduction of a new "Blue" model. In addition to being the most fuel efficient member of the family -- EPA stats on its 2.0-liter engine rise from 24 to 26 mpg in the city and 33 to 35 mpg on the highway -- it's also the lowest priced Elantra, opening at just $14,865. However that figure does include one caveat: this econo-runner is only available with a five-speed manual transmission. Functionally, the 2010 Elantra Blue gets a new "smart" alternator management system, lower-friction engine internals, revised electronic control calibrations, reshuffled transmission ratios and a new shift indicator dash readout. Visual...
It's not quite what you think. But the California Air Resources Board (CARB) has just passed the first legislation requiring solar-efficient glass to be used in all new cars sold in that state starting in 2012. Beyond literally keeping occupants cooler in the summer, the coincident reduction in the use of air conditioning will help improve average fuel economy and decrease the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. This new regulation will be enacted using a two-stage roll. From 2012-2015, all vehicle glass must be capable of rejecting at least 45 percent of the sun's total heat-producing energy, except for the windshield which will have a 50 percent rejection requirement. Starting in 2016, the numbers will rise to 60 percent all around. CARB data...
Korean electronics firm LG Chem, Inc announced that it will spend $800 million over the next four years to construct a new facility dedicated to producing advanced Lithium-ion (Li-ion) polymer batteries for use in electric vehicles. Key guests at the groundbreaking ceremony for a plant that will be located about 100 miles south of Seoul included GM's executive director-global vehicle engineering, Robert Kruse, and Hyundai Motor's president of R&D Yang Woong-chul. Both automakers have signed contracts with LG Chem to provide Li-ion polymer batteries for their future EV and hybrid vehicles, the highest-profile of which is the upcoming Chevrolet Volt. While GM's pending Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings could potentially impact that agreement, LG...
President Obama today presented a landmark proposal aimed at moving the country ahead on the road to a clean energy economy. Speaking in the White House Rose Garden and flanked by members of his administration and key auto executives, Obama offered a comprehensive approach that will significantly boost fuel economy numbers and resolve the ongoing legal wrangling that has long set automakers and the state of California at odds over supplemental greenhouse gas emissions issues. The president, who characterized the existing rules governing fuel economy as "inadequate, uncertain and in flux," called for the adoption of a new single-standard formula that will accelerate the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirement to 35.5 mpg by 2016 -- four...
Latest in the continuing strain of high-profile, low-emissions Hyundai concept vehicles is the new HND-4 BLUE-WILL, a unique take on a five-door crossover of tomorrow. A star of the Seoul Motor Show, it embodies a number of elements that the Korean automaker plans to incorporate into is upcoming mass-production plug-in hydrid models. The one-off BLUE-WILL's eco-friendly character starts with its bodywork. Beyond dramatic styling, a number of panels are made from bio-plastics that are derived from plant rather than petroleum-based materials. The BLUE-WILL's headlamp bezels are made from reprocessed soft drink bottles and its panorama roof design integrates a series of dye-sensitized solar cells that can generate additional electricity to help operate...
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