For Hyundai, Blue Is the New Green

For Hyundai, Blue Is the New Green
By Stuart Schwartzapfel November 24, 2008 | 2:59:09 PMCategories: Alt Fuel, Concept Cars, Los Angeles Auto Show

LOS ANGELES — Hyundai is making a big splash here at the L.A. Auto Show with a promise to deliver a full line of hybrids and gasoline vehicles that average 35 mpg by 2015. The cornerstone of the Korean automaker's eco-plan is a hybrid sedan that breaks new ground with lithium polymer batteries Hyundai says are cheaper, lighter and more durable than anything else on the road.

By embracing lithium polymer technology, Hyundai is breaking with competitors like Toyota, which remains dedicated to the nickel-metal hydride batteries used in the Prius, and General Motors, which is pouring everything it has into developing the lithium-ion technology at the heart of the Chevrolet Volt. The company's "Blue Drive" push to seize the green mantle from Toyota and Honda begins next year when it rolls out super-efficient "Blue" versions of its already thrifty Accent and Elantra — with sticker prices below their conventional counterparts. Hyundai's first hybrid, a gas-electric version of the Sonata, follows in 2010.

“Hyundai aims to be the most fuel-efficient automaker on the planet,” says John Krafcik, VP of product development. “We’re aligning our global R&D resources in Michigan, California, Nam Yang and Frankfurt to develop the Blue Drive technologies we need to achieve our goal — a 35-mpg U.S. fleet average by 2015.”