Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors plan to release a variety of new cars in and outside Korea in the second half of this year.
They suffered sluggish sales in the first half of this year due to lack of new models. They hope to reverse the situation by releasing up to ten new models in the second half.
They expect their "A-S-K" trio, consisting of Avante, Sportage and K5, to play a key role in overcoming the crisis-like situation.
They are set to roll out as many as four new models in July alone. In Korea, Kia will show off new K5, while Hyundai will reveal new Sonata. The new K5 is a full-change model coming in five months after its previous model was launched. The K5 will be available in seven different engines, including gasoline, diesel, and hybrid.
The Sonata, which has relied on a 2.0-liter engine, will be diversified into 1.7-liter diesel and 1.6-liter gasoline turbo, following the market trend of "downsizing" which reduces the size of the engine to improve fuel efficiency and output.
The Sonata plug-in hybrid model, which will come in the third quarter of this year, will have the highest fuel efficiency among Sonata models.
