The next Hyundai vehicle in North America is likely to be a crossover, reports Edmunds. Hyundai Motor America president and CEO John Krafcik told the online publication that although the crossover market is booming, the carmaker is “very under-represented” in that segment.
“We lead the industry in sedans, we have a bunch of them,” Krafcik was quoted as saying. “But if you look at our crossover line, we (only) have two nameplates, the Tucson and the Santa Fe.”
He said that Hyundai has around a 7% share of the sedan market, but only 2% of the truck segment, which is the category crossovers and SUVs fall into in the US.
“Our growth potential in where we might want to put future products probably would be on the crossover side of the table,” said Krafcik. “There are no plans for that right now, (but) it does seem like there is a lot of action in stuff below RAV4– and Tucson-sized vehicles. A new segment is emerging.”
Edmunds reports that the carmaker could come out with a crossover that’s smaller than the Tucson. If it happens, the vehicle would go up against the likes of the Ford EcoSport, Buick Encore/Chevrolet Trax and Nissan Juke. How about a US version of the Brazil-only Hyundai HB20X (pictured)?
At one point, Hyundai had three crossovers on sale in the US – the Tucson, Santa Fe and Veracruz. Sold in some European nations as the ix55, the Veracruz was based on the Santa Fe, but was larger and positioned above it. Poor demand prompted the big Hyundai’s exit in 2012.
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awat model2 hyundai ni makin hari makin hodoh…
Hyundai, build this for Malaysian market please. So that we can have bigger selection in this segment. Mini SUV priced around RM75K-100K max. Other than the Suzuki Jimny, Ford Ecosport, Honda Jazz-based SUV, Toyota Rush. Nissan Juke is too highly priced if it were to come into Malaysia.
That brown colour reminds me of what I excreted out this morning…yucks! But by all means go for it Hyundai!
If that is what you berak in the morning, please go see doktor and get some ubat.