Facing such opposition, Hyundai ultimately decided to develop hybrid technology in South Korea. This January, it introduced its Sonata hybrid in the US to compete with Toyota’s segment-leading Prius, Honda’s Insight and Ford’s Fusion.
The launch has come at an awkward time for more established competitors, in particular the Japanese, as parts shortages caused by Japan’s March tsunami have left Toyota and Honda with little inventory. Prius sales in the US dropped 61 per cent from a year earlier in June, according to the online car pricing service, Edmunds.com.
With hybrids accounting for just over 1 per cent of global automobile sales, the success or failure of the new Sonata might seem like a peripheral issue for Hyundai – the world’s fifth biggest automaker, when counted with its affiliate Kia, and one of the fastest growing. Its sales in the US surged 24 per cent last year, against a slight fall for Toyota.
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