Hyundai Is Becoming Tesla's Biggest Threat

17 May 2022

Audi, Tesla, GM, Ford, Stellantis, and probably everyone else are having production issues, while Hyundai could be a sleeping EV giant. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 16, 2022.

Now, before anyone gets too upset, I’d like to recognize that Hyundai’s EVs and Tesla’s cars are, really, in different categories, given that Tesla is basically what American luxury looks like these days, while Hyundai makes EVs that are decidedly non-luxurious despite being very nice cars. That said, Tesla also likes to pretend that its cars are for the masses, even though a $25,000 Tesla is not coming any time soon, and probably never will.

All of that said, it is striking just how far Hyundai has come in the EV space, and, very, very quietly could be one of Tesla’s biggest threats, especially with a Genesis EV in the works. Scoff if you want, but that’s what we all did with Hyundai in the ‘90s, before they became a true powerhouse.

Hyundai has been helped by the fact that Nissan has mostly let the Leaf languish, and Toyota until very recently seemed not to give a damn about EVs, and also that Tesla seems committed to its strategy of ignoring model years, making Tesla’s current car lineup a bit long in the tooth. (Tesla’s last new car, the Model Y, started regular production in early 2020.)

Meanwhile, Genesis, Hyundai’s luxury arm that is swiftly going electric, will have three new EVs by the end of next year, and there will also be the Kia EV9, a a big SUV, along with the Hyundai Ioniq 6. Don’t look now, but there’s a real volume player in the EV game and it may not be Tesla.

Source: Jalopnik