Hyundai 2001 Annual Report Download - page 13

cars, hybrid powered cars and key automotive
technologies including emissions reduction,
safety and material recycling.
On the international rally circuit, the
Hyundai Elantra claimed the Asia Pacific
Rally Championship in its class in the 1994
and 1995 seasons, giving the company an
encouraging start in professional motor sports.
Hyundai Motor Company endured a
difficult year in 1998, as domestic sales
sharply declined. However, a succession of new
models, starting with the EF Sonata and
Grandeur XG have earned Hyundai the
highest accolades in the international
automotive press and sustained exports
which partially offset the loss experienced in
the domestic market.
It was also a period of company-wide and
industry-wide restructuring.
The Kia/Asia Motors acquisition combined
with the Hyundai Precision and Industries Co.
and Hyundai Motor Service Co. mergers will
allow Hyundai Motor Company to achieve the
economies of scale needed to compete in the
global market.
The year 1999 was a very active and
fruitful one for Hyundai as it exported almost
700,000 cars while domestic sales recovered
to healthy levels enjoyed before the 1997
Asian financial crisis. Following the successful
debuts of the EF Sonata and Grandeur XG in
1998, Hyundai unveiled four new models in
1999: Centennial, New Accent, Coupe face-
lift and Trajet. Trajet, Hyundai’s first
expression of the MPV concept, took the
company into a new segment and further
extended our line-up. The company also
signed on as the exclusive automotive
sponsor for the 2002 FIFA World Cup which
paved the way for our advance into global
sports marketing.
In 2000, Hyundai greeted the new
millennium by moving into a new corporate
headquarters in Yangje-dong and severing
links with the Hyundai Group to establish the
Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Korea’s first
automotive-based conglomerate. It was also
the year of strategic alliances as Hyundai
joined hands with DaimlerChrysler to explore
new synergies. Hyundai also partnered with
Capstone Turbine to work on alternative
propulsion systems and in the same year,
teamed up with International Fuel Cells to co-
develop fuel cell technology. Hyundai’s
advanced technology was on display at the
Chicago Motor Show where the HCD-V
concept car was unveiled. Other unveilings
that year included the Santa Fe and Avante
XD. Plans were also announced to build a
300,000 per annum plant in China.
In terms of profits, production and sales,
2001 was a banner year for Hyundai. It was
also an important year for commercial
vehicles as Hyundai introduced the Libero/H-
1 truck, inaugurated Daimler-Hyundai Truck
Corp. and launched its first trucks in the U.S.
market. Hyundai also rolled out Terracan, an
SUV while its younger sibling Santa Fe
topped the ratings in AutoPacific’s customer
satisfaction survey. The introduction of
Lavita/Matrix gave Hyundai a strongly
competitive mini-multi-purpose vehicle for
Europe. Coupe fans were pleasantly
surprised by the sleek styling of
Tuscani/Coupe which bowed in 2001 as did
the HCD-6 Roadster unveiled at Chicago
Motor Show. The long-awaited opening of the
Hyundai-Kia California Design and Technical
Center signaled a major new phase in the
company’s technological evolution.
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2001 Annual ReportHyundai Motor Company