Word: hyundais
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...course, quality isn't everything. Chung has also ramped up efforts to ensure that Hyundai is competitive in technology and styling. Hyundai's R&D budget has expanded 110% since 1999, to $1.6 billion this year. Hyundai invested $200 million to open or expand R&D centers in California, Michigan and Germany; a $60 million proving ground in California's Mojave Desert opened in January. And in South Korea, he expanded R&D headquarters, adding a new design center complete with a 3-D cinema for viewing virtual models. Lee says Chung visited his office recently and asked...
Meanwhile, Hyundai has also needed to be innovative to woo back reluctant customers. In 1998 the company began offering a 10-year warranty, the best in the industry at the time. And to compete with bigger brands, Hyundai loaded up its models with features that many of its rivals sell only as expensive extras. A 2006 Sonata for the U.S. market comes with six air bags (most competitors offer only four as the standard), a six-speaker CD and MP3 player, and an advanced antilock-braking system--all for less than...
With some of its biggest rivals in disarray, Hyundai sees an opportunity to build on its progress overseas. Slammed by rising costs and slumping U.S. sales, General Motors recently shocked investors by reporting a $1.1 billion first-quarter loss, and Ford has downgraded its 2005 profit forecast. Chung is determined to keep the pressure on. He's moving Hyundai's product line into larger, higher-profit vehicles. In October, Hyundai unveiled a small sport-utility vehicle, the Tucson. Later this year the company will launch a new high-end sedan for the U.S. market, the Azera, and early...
...even with its recent success, Hyundai's market position remains insecure, and the next few months will be challenging. With a host of new models coming out and its U.S. plant just revving up, Hyundai may have a harder time maintaining quality. "They're not out of the woods yet," says J.D. Power's Parker. Dwindling profit margins are another problem. The average Hyundai car retails for 10% to 15% less than a comparable Toyota or Honda in the U.S., but with rising labor costs and a weaker dollar, Hyundai must persuade customers to pay more so that profits keep...
After all, Hyundai's road trip is really just beginning. Despite its impressive winning streak, the company is still only the world's seventh largest carmaker, with 3.3 million vehicles sold globally, and that includes sales by its Kia subsidiary. But Chung has grand ambitions. "We will make ourselves an invincible competitor," he says. Hyundai's larger rivals should mark those words whenever they check their rearview mirror for overtaking traffic. --With reporting by Daren Fonda/New York and Frank Sikora/Montgomery