Hyundai Motor in Seoul, South Korea, has confirmed a pick-up utility vehicle will make it into showrooms, in the United States.
Reuters reports Hyundai US vice president of corporate and product planning, Michael J. O’Brien, says top management has given the thumbs up to development of a Santa Cruz-style ute.
US Hyundai dealers are said to have pushed the decision to invest given the decline in sedan sales and increase of SUVs.
Hyundai says in a statement, “It’s still too soon to discuss market timing or further product details, but this innovative offering will be inspired by the well-received concept vehicle and bring a fresh utility vehicle interpretation to fit the lifestyles of a new generation of buyers.”
“Our glasses are fairly clean, we understand we have a shortfall,” O’Brien adds.
‘Crossover’ SUVs, built on sedan-like chassis, now make up roughly 30% of total light vehicle sales in the US. Hyundai US sales are down almost 11% as of July 31, 2017, Sonata sales have fallen 30% from January to July – but Hyundai SUVs are selling 11% up in the same period, Forbes reports.
Rival carmaker Honda is selling its new Ridgeline pick-up at 253% in July 2017 over July 2016 – that’s 21,182 units compared with 5,992 last year.
Chief executive Scott Fink from Hyundai’s biggest US dealership in New Port Richey, Florida, says the demand for a Hyundai pick-up is frustrating.
“We are optimistic about the future,” he tells Reuters, “But we are disappointed that we don’t have the products today.”
Hyundai Australia’s general manager external affairs Bill Thomas tells CarAdvice the ute is unlikely to make it down under in the foreseeable future.
“We have no confirmation that it will be built in right-hand drive, for starters, and if it were, Australia would likely be the only significant right-hand drive market,” Thomas tells Anthony Crawford.
“While we aren’t ruling anything out, a more suitable pickup for us would be one that would rival market leaders like Hilux and Ranger – one that would equal or beat those vehicles for towing and payload,” he says.
In May 2015 Hyundai Australia confirmed light commercial vehicles, 3.5-tonne H350 vans and 4.0-tonne light buses were being sold in Europe in left-hand drive. “However plans to engineer a RHD variant are being review with no timeframe yet confirmed,” the company wrote at the time.
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