Monday, May 2, 2005

Global Automotive Report

Hyundai Motor eyes rear-drive luxury cars in 2007

Reuters

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SEOUL - South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said on Monday it may produce rear-wheel-drive luxury cars around 2007 to emulate the success of BMW's premium cars and Toyota's Lexus, and also churn out hybrid cars later in 2006.

The moves by the country's top automaker, which controls half the home market, is seen as a step towards its goal of being among the world's top five car makers by 2010.

"We have not decided in what brand the luxury model will be, but rear-drive cars like BMW and Toyota's Lexus will be launched around 2007," a Hyundai spokesman said by telephone.

It currently produces only front-wheel-drive cars.

Hyundai and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. will also bring forward by a year, to end-2006, plans to sell small-size hybrid cars to the United States, the spokesman said.

The first hybrid models will be subcompact cars of Hyundai's Accent and Kia's Rio, which share production platforms.

France's new car sales rise again in April

PARIS - France's new car sales rose 12.2 percent in April -- the sixth consecutive monthly rise -- as both domestic and foreign auto manufacturers posted double-digit gains, according to data from the CCFA industry group.

New car registrations rose to 194,720 vehicles from 173,612 vehicles in April 2004, the Comite des Constructeurs Francais d'Automobiles (CCFA) said in a statement.

This brought the year-to-date rise to 5.9 percent, or 7.2 percent using the same number of business days, the CCFA said.

"Despite a still uncertain economic environment, the French market continues to perform well," the CCFA said. "April is the sixth consecutive positive month, a unique case among major European markets."