Hyundai�s European president believes his firm�s future lies in MPVs and more derivatives of its existing models.
Kun-Hee Ahn, chief of the Korean firm�s European operation said: "The world is currently a very unfriendly place for SUVs. For us the future has two directions. We will do more MPVs: our smaller B and C segment i20 and i30 will each have a people carrier version built on their platform." The i30 MPV is reportedly very close to the i-Mode concept from earlier this year, is expected to be unveiled in 2010. A vehicle based on the newly launched i20 supermini will follow it.
Ahn added: "We don�t think the future is in opening new niches. We�ll let other companies do that. We will offer people more choice with our existing cars. So each model will have a larger number of engine sizes and trim levels."
Despite the global downturn Hyundai and sister company Kia still have ambitious sales targets. Ahn claimed: "Currently our worldwide sales are just below four million annually and we want to sell six million cars a year by 2010 � and make money on those we sell. We think it�s possible because we�ll achieve growth through emerging markets such as India."
"In America (where the i50 is called Genesis) we are stealing customers from Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. But people aren�t as brand sensitive there. Here, if we price a car at more than �30,000/�23,600 at todays rate, customers can�t handle it so we still have some thinking to do."
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