U.S. might not see Hyundai’s new Grandeur
Published: 27 Nov. 2016, 19:30
Hyundai Motor is said to be considering not exporting its latest large sedan, the Grandeur IG, to the United States amid decreasing popularity, according to multiple sources.
Even though the 2.4-liter high-end sedan, the sixth-generation model of the 30-year-old Grandeur line, has been a best-seller in Korea, it is in an odd position in the United States, stuck between the Sonata sedan and premium brand Genesis.
In the first 10 months of this year, 4,134 Grandeur cars were sold. During the same period, the 3.3-liter Genesis G80 posted sales of 170,243 vehicles and the 2-liter Sonata sold 21,635.
The Genesis brand is expected to further shrink the Grandeur’s standing abroad, especially since Hyundai has been making efforts to push the luxury lineup to reach the level of Toyota’s Lexus. When a model fails to maintain an optimal level of sales for a certain period, marketing costs undermine profit, and Hyundai withdrew its Sonata model from Europe in 2011 for this reason.
Hints of Hyundai’s plan not to release the Grandeur in the United States came as the top automaker unusually skipped the process of coming up with a sales goal for global markets when unveiling the new model on Nov. 22.
The Grandeur IG comes with partially autonomous driving technology called Hyundai Smart Sense and improved design features that might appeal to a younger demographic.
BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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