Hybrids From Hyundai: Full Speed Ahead

2010 Hyundai Elantra LPI Hybrid, sold in South Korea only

As major introductions go, the Hyundai Elantra LPI Hybrid isn't that impressive. The first-ever hybrid electric vehicle introduced by automaker Hyundai will be sold only in South Korea, and its engine runs on liquified petroleum gas (LPG).

While its sales goals for this Elantra Hybrid are modest--7,500 by the end of December, 15,000 for the full year 2010--that car is the first small step in an aggressive plan by the ambitious and growing Korean automaker to become a major player in hybrid vehicles.

Going up against the gorilla

Hyundai's goal is to compete globally in hybrids with Toyota (the 900-pound gorilla) and GM (whose 2011 Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle leapfrogs Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system, running 40 miles on electricity).

In the US, the company will introduce a hybrid version of its 2011 Hyundai Sonata sedan next year, to be built in its plant in Montgomery, Alabama. That car is likely to be shown this November at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show.

2011 Hyundai Sonata

That will make Hyundai only the third company to build hybrids in the US: Toyota now makes the Camry Hybrid in Kentucky, and Ford has built Escape Hybrid sport utilities here since 2004. (The new 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid is made in Mexico.)

The Hyundai Sonata Hybrid will use a battery pack based on lithium-ion cells rather than the older nickel-metal-hydride chemistry used by Toyota and Ford. Korean manufacturer LG Chem will supply those cells; it also provides lithium-ion cells to GM for the 2011 Volt.

The hybrid Sonata will be followed by a plug-in hybrid vehicle late in 2012, which the company has said will have roughly a 38-mile range in electric mode and return more than 50 miles per gallon when operating as a hybrid.

The plug-in will be a dedicated hybrid, with a unique body not shared with any gasoline model. Hyundai says it will be based on the Blue-Will four-door sports sedan concept it unveiled in April at the Seoul Motor Show.

That concept paired a 1.6-liter gasoline engine with a 100-kilowatt electric motor, producing combined peak power of 152 horsepower.

REVIEW from TheCarConnection.com: 2009 Hyundai Sonata

Betting on success

Hyundai is still far behind Toyota, which has built more than 1 million of its distinctive Prius hybrid alone, and promises to offer a hybrid variant of every vehicle in its line during this decade.

Nor does the Korean company have GM's institutional knowledge of electric vehicles, gained from the EV1 program more than a decade ago and now applied to the series-hybrid 2011 Chevrolet Volt.

But few would bet against Hyundai as it adds hybrids to its growing array of vehicle types. It recently announced it would sell its Equus luxury car in the US, going head to head with Toyota's well-established Lexus brand.

Meanwhile, Hyundai has done comparatively well in the global economic recession that has battered many large automakers over the last year. Its US sales have dropped far less than those of General Motors, Ford, and Toyota.

Hyundai's lineup of mostly smaller, fuel-efficient cars (it sells no trucks) also gets good marks for quality; a recent JD Power new-vehicle quality survey ranked its new cars ahead of Toyota, among others.

And its showroom traffic has benefited from an innovative marketing program that allows buyers to return their new cars if they lost their jobs.

Here at GreenCarReports.com, we'll keep you posted with any new information we learn on the 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid.