Behind the Wheel: Hyundai Entourage and Kia Sedona: American Pie From a Korean Kitchen November 17, 2006
The Entourage is virtually identical to the Sedona. The vans are also similar in shape, dimensions, powertrains, performance and features to models from Honda, Toyota and Chrysler. DETROIT MY family has a favorite recipe for sugar cookies, which we bake for nearly every holiday. We decorate the round shapes with orange frosting for Halloween, colorful sprinkles at Christmas and red sugar on Valentine’s Day.This is not unlike the auto industry’s approach to the minivan. You’ll find the same basic recipe no matter which carmaker’s kitchen is doing the baking, and the shapes are formed with cookie cutters that vary …
Behind the Wheel: Hyundai Entourage and Kia Sedona: American Pie From a Korean Kitchen November 11, 2006
The Entourage is virtually identical to the Sedona. The vans are also similar in shape, dimensions, powertrains, performance and features to models from Honda, Toyota and Chrysler. DETROIT Skip to next paragraph Enlarge This ImageSedona can be equipped with a power liftgate and power sliding doors. MY family has a favorite recipe for sugar cookies, which we bake for nearly every holiday. We decorate the round shapes with orange frosting for Halloween, colorful sprinkles at Christmas and red sugar on Valentine’s Day.This is not unlike the auto industry’s approach to the minivan. You’ll find the same basic recipe no …
Behind the Wheel: 2006 Hyundai Azera: An Avalon Knockoff Comes Knocking June 11, 2006
For now, Hyundai’s competitors can breathe a sigh of relief that the Azera isn’t the world-beater that some of us expected it to be. But they’d better make it a brief sigh. SOME 14 months ago, at the 2005 New York auto show, Hyundai summoned dealers, journalists and Wall Street analysts to a reception a couple of blocks from the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The main event was the unveiling of a new “entry luxury” car, the Azera. Skip to next paragraph MultimediaChart: Swimming in the MainstreamRelatedHyundai Hits a Speed Bump Enlarge this ImageInterior looks plusher than it …
Chairman of Hyundai Is Charged With Theft May 17, 2006
SEOUL, South Korea, May 16 ? The chairman of the Hyundai Motor Company, South Korea’s largest carmaker and a symbol of the nation’s economic rise, was charged Tuesday with embezzling more than $100 million and causing far larger financial damage to companies under his control. The chairman, Chung Mong Koo, 68, was charged with misappropriating 130 billion won ($136 million) to set up a slush fund that was apparently used to buy political influence, Chae Dong Wook, a senior prosecutor at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, told reporters. He said Mr. Chung was also charged with breach of trust, accused …
Hyundai Motor’s Net Off 38%; Scandal and Currency Moves Cited May 4, 2006
SEOUL, South Korea, Thursday, May 4 (Bloomberg News) ? The Hyundai Motor Company, whose chairman, Chung Mong Koo, was arrested last week in a bribery investigation, reported on Thursday that first-quarter net income fell a greater-than-expected 38 percent because gains in the won eroded the value of its overseas sales. Net income declined to 318.8 billion won ($340 million) compared with 509.8 billion won a year earlier, the company reported. Operating profit rose 4 percent, to 335.3 billion won, from 322.7 billion won while sales climbed 11 percent, to 6.86 trillion won, from 6.17 trillion won.Declining earnings and the …
Hyundai Chairman Accused of Embezzling April 29, 2006
Prosecutors said Chung Mong Koo had set up a $105 million slush fund to bribe officials and politicians. Prosecutors said the chairman, Chung Mong Koo, 68, who led the company’s global expansion and raised its image by emphasizing quality, had set up a $105 million slush fund to bribe government officials and politicians. He is also facing a charge of breach of trust, accused of causing more than $315 million in damage to the company through his misconduct.Prosecutors portrayed the arrest as a testament to the commitment of regulators to crack down on corruption in the country’s family-controlled business …
Hyundai offers $1 billion apology April 21, 2006
In an attempt to offset some of the damage being done to his company by the current bribery scandal, Hyundai CEO Chung Mong-koo and his son are offering around $1 billion worth of personal shares in Hyundai’s Glovis logistics subsidiary to various charities. The scandal engulfing the South Korean carmaker alleges that the company embezzled money from its associates which was then used to garner favors from government officials regarding construction approvals and other lucrative permits. Chung Mong-koo and his son Chung Eui-sun have already been extensively questioned by South Korean Prosecutors in regards to the allegations, and …
Hyundai breaks ground on new plant in Beijing April 18, 2006
South Korean car company Hyundai has begun work on a one billion dollar manufacturing plant in Beijing, its second in the region. When mass production begins in April 2008, Hyundai says the new plant, which also features an R&D center, will double its production capacity in the area giving it a solid base from which to challenge China’s automotive leaders and with which to rapidly further expand its local operations. Beijing secretary Liu Woo Chi observed: “Over the past three years Beijing Hyundai has proven itself not only to be the most exemplary Korean-Chinese joint venture company but …
Another Hyundai Official Swept Up in Inquiry
The South Korean investigation into the carmaker’s cash-for-favors scheme extended to the company’s second-highest ranking executive. “We are questioning Hyundai Motor vice chairman Kim,” a prosecutor at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office in Seoul, Chae Dong Wook, said, declining to say if the executive would be detained after questioning. Mr. Kim, responsible for Hyundai’s finances and an aide to the carmaker’s chairman, Chung Mong Koo, was not available to comment.The investigation into Hyundai’s bribery scandal has led to the arrests of three people including a lobbyist, the head of an accounting firm and chief of the carmaker’s logistics affiliate. Mr. …
2006 Hyundai Accent reviews March 1, 2006
No longer a downmarket penalty box, the new Accent is pleasant to drive, comfortable and loaded with features — at a bargain price.Pros
Ample acceleration, smooth ride, stable handling, attractive interior, comfortable seats front and rear, standard front side and side curtain airbags, generous warranty.
Cons
Cruise control isn’t available, a few plastics look cheap.
What’s New for 2006
The 2006 Hyundai Accent sedan has been completely redesigned for 2006. It’s now roomier and more refined and comes with a features list topped by a spunky 110-hp engine and standard ABS and side curtain airbags.
Introduction:
Introduced in 1995, the Accent surprised people with its solid construction …