March17
Over the past few months, rumors have been circling that Hyundai is readying its own luxury brand in the same vein as Toyota started Lexus and Nissan launched its Infiniti brand. Those rumors appear to have been well founded as Hyundai announced that it will launch a new luxury brand in 2010.
But unlike how Toyota, Nissan and Honda launched their luxury brands — Lexus, Infiniti and Acura, respectively — first here in the U.S., Hyundai will launch its yet-to-be-named luxury brand in China. "In 2010, we will officially launch our luxury brand name and logo along the lines of Toyota's Lexus, Nissan's Infiniti and Honda's Acura. All of our luxury models will have the new badge," Young-Key Koo, chief representative of Hyundai Motor China for sales and marketing, told Gasgoo.com.
But the launch of the luxury brand doesn't mean that the Hyundai brand will move down class. In fact, Koo says that the Hyundai brand will actually be making the move to a premium brand in China as well. Hyundai recently stopped selling its Matrix MPV there because, according to Koo, it "targets at average consumers, which is not in line with our strategy to build Hyundai as a high-end brand."
Hyundai's plan to keep up its luxury image will include the launch of several new products over the next couple of years, including the Santa Fe, Azera and Genesis sedan.
No word if Hyundai plans to bring its luxury brand to the U.S.
sum-yung gai
So, let me get this straight Hyundai:
You're going to start a luxury brand AND move Hyundai up to be a premium brand at the same time!? WOW, you are like "geniuzez"!
VW tried this crap maneuver in Europe and now it's stepping on it's own toes by getting VWs, Audi's, Skodas and Seats all competing for the same market… Does the VW "nobody bought it" Phaeton ring any bell?!? This is the biggest european manufacturer we're talking about! You know, the one that is about to be bought by Porsche, a small privately owned company…
Sounds like total marketing bull to me as everyone is pretending to be "premium" or "luxury" just to justify their ever increasing need of money caused by mindless expansion…
Hyundai is the one to watch.
Honda's Acura came 3 years before the Lexus and Infiniti brands
Just thought they should be mentioned first
Hyundai is the one to watch but they ned to make up their minds and come out with a luxury brand in the US and leave Kia to the low end buyers
Stinky007, remember VW also tried this in an established market, where the name VW was already implanted in the consumers' mind as a people's car. While Hyundai is making a smart move by launching their luxury brand in an emerging car market. 10 years ago luxury car brands in China werent that serious, but with the booming economy and more people with the money to purchase such cars (minus any cheap brand stigma) Hyundai will be in an even better position than lauching it in North America. Remember people are now just warming up to the Hyundai brand as a dependable car. Can just put the horse before the carriage.
words that doesnt come together:
China and luxury
Hyundai and luxury
This is a really smart move on Hyundai's part
Words that won't come together anymore if the economy stays like crap is
America and luxury
They forgot to mention that Lexus was Toyota's catch-up attempt to Honda's Acura.
They'll have a long road ahead to them to challenge Buick. Buick in China gets proper Buicks, which are big and RWD. They rebadge the big luxury Holdens.
manhem > those words never came together..
Black- I think Cadillac, Lincoln, and Buick would argue with that statement. They have just a wee bit more history and success than the newbies.
lol @ A4 with the first comment. I wanna see how this will turn out
^ I understand what you're saying after all the US's economy is by far the world's biggest and at least three times bigger than any of those countries mentioned, but i doubt that all those brands mentioned would go bankrupt if the US was out of the equation. Sure businees would slow down by quite a lot but i doubt they'd go bankrupt.
Wait. The are going to call this lux brand Young KooKey? Kooky? Great idea.
They'd be better off calling it a Hyundaimler.
LOL
Go away BlackXcrement.
China is the market for Hundai, keep that Korean crap off the road in the USA.
Remember kids if there's a dick that needs eating, then just call on me. Your neighbourhood homo
here's a remix i did to sir mix alot's song
i like big cocks and I can not lie
You other homo's can't deny
That when a tranny walks in with a big fat cock
And a round testicle in your face
You get sprung, wanna pull out your tongue
what do you think of it??? Is it good???????????
Good for Hyundai. China has a different structure for most companies anyway. The Buick there is rebadged Daewoo. Maybe Hyundai will start a luxury brand here eventually and leave the Hyundai brand as the "people's brand" for the lack of a better word. Once you offer something low end like the Accent, I just don't see how you can move the brand up-market.
here's a remix i did to sir mix alot's song
:D 
i like big cocks and I can not lie
You other homo's can't deny
That when a tranny walks in with a big fat cock
And a round testicle in your face
You get sprung, wanna pull out your tongue
what do you think of it??? Is it good???
^ STFU
Fryboy
Lexus was Toyota's Day Of Reckoning for Honda's Acura.
This is good news, but pointless, if the Hyundai brand cannot be grown sufficiently in the US. They have hit a stiff plateau at 500k sales annually.
It would be a minimum of 5 years from now before they could launch a legit channel, around the time the Genesis may be redesigned.
They'll need at least 1-2 years to figure out if China will buy the new brand.
Their timing may be off, as it looks like Infiniti and Acura may actually be competitive by then. Now would've been a better time to attack, with the Lexus LS going upmarket, and Infiniti/Acura still sputtering.
They'd love to use the mighty Lexus name, but they have A WAYS TO GO before eevn thinking about being mentioned in the same breath.
In several years, they will make a fine Acura/Infiniti competitor. I wish them Good luck.
DrFill
This should be a great marriage, the shittest car company in the world selling their 'luxury' brand to a country of money obsessed rice growers that have no class or brains………'Chinese' and 'luxury' in the same sentence………..it must be close to April fools day.
Faglight/LP, the remix is most excellent. Good laughs on LLN, all the time:
You like cum-guzzling and you cannot lie
It's dripping into your eye
That when a dickhole sprays in your motherfucking face
You're the biggest fucking gay,
You get sprung
How's that faggoteers?
The timing is right for Hyundai to do this. When Lexus came out in 1989 Toyota was putting out rusty shitboxes, like the tired boxy early-gen Camry and the Corolla, which was an unholy shitbox back then. They had a Supra, DEFINITELY on par with the V6 Tiburon today, and not much else I can remember that's notable.
Not only that, but according to Wikipedia Toyota conceived Lexus in 1983. In other words, if Hyundai patterned themselves after Toyota they should have been thinking of a luxury spinoff around 5 years ago.
1115: "Hyundai is the one to watch but they ned to make up their minds and come out with a luxury brand in the US and leave Kia to the low end buyers."
I say take Hyundai upmarket and leave Kia to the low-end buyers