Hyundai, Kia to end Maruti Suzuki’s dominance as part of 2020 plan

Hyundai India and Kia India, as a part of the Hyundai Motor Group, aim to end Maruti Suzuki’s market dominance through the group’s 2020 Market Leadership Commitment. Euisun Chung, Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) - Hyundai Motor Group, announced the 2020 business direction in a New Year’s address to its stakeholders.

Hyundai Motor Group will emphasize on innovations in technology, business and customer-centred mindset to reach its goal of market leadership in the years to come. This will also involve breakthroughs in electrification, autonomous driving and mobility services.

The company will invest over KRW100 trillion (USD 86.25 billion) over the next five years, which equates to KRW20 trillion (7.19 USD billion) annually, to develop 44 electric vehicles including 11 BEV (Battery Electric Vehicles) by 2025. Hyundai also plans to commercialize autonomous driving technology by 2023.

While this is Hyundai Motor Group’s business strategy for the global market, we expect Hyundai and Kia to introduce some of these models in India in the years to come. These will include affordable EVs and hybrid solutions in the short term, and full-blown long-range EVs around 2025. In the near future, Kia plans to launch a Vitara Brezza and Ertiga rival in India, while Hyundai is set to introduce the next-generation Elite i20 and the all-new Creta. This should collectively help Hyundai and Kia to dethrone Maruti Suzuki from the top position.

Both the companies are also considering to introduce the Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride in India, to take on the likes of Toyota Fortuner and the Ford Endeavour. However, both these vehicles are specific to the US market and it will take some time to develop an RHD version. And besides these two full-size SUVs, Hyundai is also gauging market response to reintroduce the Sonata in India, especially after its radical makeover earlier this year.