Hyundai cars

2013 Hyundai Genesis Coupe by Re:Mix Lab

Every year at SEMA, Korean automaker Hyundai and Re:Mix Lab head over to Las Vegas to present a set of vehicles that have been revamped so extensively you’d probably mistake them for a different vehicle altogether.

Lo and behold, the 2012 SEMA Auto Show will be no different as the two companies are on their way to present a trio of cars at an after-hours party hosted by Re:Mix Lab. No, we’re not seeing these custom Hyundai’s at the SEMA show floor, but if you can get passes to the Re:Mix Lab after party, you might get a chance to see these bad boys in the flesh.

One of the car’s that has been customized is the Hyundai Genesis Coupe, a stunner of a sports car if we ever saw one. But Hyundai and Re:Mix Lab take it to a whole new level with a series of customizations for the Korean sports car.

Full details have yet to be revealed, but it appears, at least by looking at the photo, that the Genesis Coupe will carry a host of carbon fiber accents, a polished pearl white paint finish, matte black finishes on the grille and the roof, a new set of wheels, and a lowered suspension. Meanwhile, the interior also looks to have gotten new upholstered racing seats with a Terra Cotta leather trim dressing up the interior.

Look out for the Genesis Coupe by Re:Mix Lab at SEMA!

2013 Hyundai i20 World Rally Championship Rally Car

If you haven’t been following the world of rally racing for the past decade, you’re probably surprised that there seems to be a disproportionate level of buzz surrounding Hyundai’s return to the World Rally Championship?

Wait, did they ever leave? That’s one of the questions we’ve received from some folks and the answer, of course, is yes. Back in 2003, in fact.

That’s why when Hyundai opens their exhibit at the 2012 Paris Motor Show with the i20 World Rally Championship Rally Car, nobody should be surprised because it’s a really big deal.

As far as details are concerned, the Korean automaker is keeping that close to their chest, particularly because there could be more than just WRC-prepped model in attendance at Paris. What we’ve been informed, though, is that the car is expected to carry a turbocharged engine that hits all the right notes at 200 horsepower.

Keep it close here because Hyundai’s apparent interest in returning to the World Rally Championship could all be confirmed at the 2012 Paris Motor Show. After all, they wouldn’t go through all the trouble of building this rally prototype of the i20 if they weren’t that serious.

2013 Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell Vehicle

At the 2012 Paris Auto Show, Hyundai announced plans to become the first global automaker to begin commercial rollout of zero-emissions vehicles. Deliveries on their new ix35 Fuel Cell Vehicle will begin in December 2012 and by 2015, the company hopes to have built up to 1,000 units.

The ix35 Fuel Cell Vehicle is powered by hydrogen, with a fuel cell stack converting the hydrogen into electricity, which in turn charges the Lithium Polymer battery that powers the vehicle’s electric motor. Other technologies include kinetic energy regeneration system that charges the battery when the driver applies the brakes or drives downhill, plus a start/stop system which helps minimize energy loss in city driving. The only emission generated by the ix35 Fuel Cell is water steam. The ix35 Fuel Cell will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 12.5 seconds, can hit a top speed of 100 mph, and can travel 588km (365miles) without refueling.

"The ix35 Fuel Cell is the pinnacle of Hyundai’s advanced engineering and our most powerful commitment to be the industry leader in eco-friendly mobility," said Vice Chairman Woong Chul Yang, head of Hyundai R&D. "Zero-emissions cars are no longer a dream. Our ix35 Fuel Cell vehicle is here today, and ready for commercial use.

2013 Hyundai Genesis Coupe R-Spec by ARK

About a decade ago, if you mentioned a performance Hyundai model, you might get a slight snicker from a crowd of people. In the last five years, Hyundai has upped its game to include a nice array of both luxury and performance models. The pinnacle of Hyundai’s performance line is the Genesis 3.8 R-Spec.

This machine boasts a 3.8-liter V-6 engine that pumps out a stout 348 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. This is enough to get this big sports coupe to 60 mph in just 5.3 seconds, putting it a class that no Hyundai has ever been in before – well, no production Hyundai at least.

With SEMA quickly approaching and Hyundai looking to show off the potential of its Genesis R-Spec, it has teamed up with the folks at ARK Performance to create a track-ready monster. This ARK Genesis Coupe R-Spec will make the trip along with Hyundai’s factory team at SEMA and hope to impress enough buyers to snag up their own Genesis R-Spec and do the same.

So what exactly went into building this beast? Click past the jump to find out exactly what this bad boy is packing.

2012 Hyundai Genesis Coupe Project Panther by SCHMIDT Revolution

The Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-Spec is one of the more attractive - and affordable - sports cars out on the market today. It’s also a car that’s ripe for some aftermarket lovin’.

Hyundai’s Frankfurt dealership took this to heart per the request of one of its customers, and with the help of Schmidt Revolution, they were able to trick out the Genesis Coupe with a series of new aftermarket products. It’s called the Project Panther.

The first part of the tuning work was improving the car’s overall style. A hand-made grille was fitted into the car as well as revised bumpers with new fog lamps, LEDs, and blacked-out headlights. Over at the back, Hyundai Frankfurt fitted a new IXION diffuser and a rear spoiler, giving it a more pronounced rear profile that highlights its sports car roots. Rounding out the exterior are a new set of 20" SCHMIDT Revolution FS Line three-piece wheels wrapped in Falken tires.

Inside, a couple of new features were also added, including a double DIN Pioneer AVIC in-dash system, and a MAGDEN digital display for showing OBD data.

Finally, the Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-Spec also gets a new stainless steel exhaust system with four tailpipes and 200-cell metal catalysts by INJEN. No output figures were released, but with these modifications in tow, you can expect this black beast to produce more than the 306-horsepower it carries in standard guise.

The iPhone 5’s New Lightning Interface May Cause Fits For i-Ready-Car Owners

We understand all too well that companies tend to change things up just for the sake of change in some cases. We see it every year in the automotive world. Fortunately, in our world, this typically doesn’t affect you all too much if you had a car just before a drastic and utterly meaningless upgrade occurred. You just keep on motoring.

Well, when it comes to some electronics, these changes can spell disaster if you are not well informed and prepared. Case in point is the new iPhone 5, which iFolk are iTrading their iPhone 4s like iHotcakes to get their iHands on, but there is a problem that they may run into when trying to dock up their flashy new iPhone 5 to their iPhone-ready car… The new “Lightning” interface connector will not connect, even if you just snagged up a 2013 model year.

The only way to rectify this issue is to go to the store and pick up $29 (Apple licensed) adapters for your car and the other numerous doo-dads that you hook it up to. Additionally, for those that have ever tried using cellphone adapters of any sort, please think of the last one you bought – licensed or not – that actually worked the way it was supposed to. Not too often, huh?

So this may, create a small tizzy in the automotive industry, as owners may take to the dealerships up in arms as to why the car companies had no idea that the iPhone 5 would not fit their massive 30-pin receptacle. This could result in automakers like Kia, Hyundai, Audi, and VW, all of which have the old-style iPhone connector, having to offer all of its new-car buyers these adapters – possibly free of charge to avoid legal issues.

This just shows how something as little as a change in the connector for seemingly no reason at all can lead to serious headaches for your customers. Apple really should have included the adapter with the iPhone 5 and very well may decide to retroactively do so in the future, if the issue becomes too big.

Video: Rhys Millen Pikes Peak 2012 World Record

At this year’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, Rhys Millen and team RMR have set a new world record with a time of 9:46.164. And today Rhys has revealed a pretty cool video showing the entire hill climb.

With this time, Millen was just few tenths of a second quicker than 2010 Le Mans Champion Romain Dumas and his Porsche 997 GT3-R who managed a time of 9:46.181.

"With the newly paved section of the course and the hot weather conditions, a lot of people failed or crashed. Our cars balance remained the same from practice to race day using these Hankook F200 Tires this entire run. Even on a slick tire and torrential downpour in the last mile and a half, with the heat we were able to achieve in the tires the grip was still adequate and we were able to produce a new world record,” said Rhys Millen after Sundays victory from the summit.

2012 Hyundai Veloster Turbo SE

Hyundai UK has announced that the new Veloster Turbo SE will be available on the market starting September 24th at a starting price of £21,995 ($34,800). The model will be offered in a standard White Crysta exterior paint, but an optional Phantom Black (Pearl) and a Matte Grey finish can be ordered for £445 ($704 at the current rates) and £525 ($830 at the current rates), respectively. A tilt and slide Panoramic sunroof is also available for £950 ($1,500).

The new Veloster Turbo SE will be offered with a 1.6-liter T-GDI turbocharged engine that delivers a total of 184 HP and 195 lb-ft of torque. Mated to a standard six-speed manual transmission, the model will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 8.4 seconds and up to a top speed of 133 mph.

On the front end, the Veloster gets a new front bumper, radiator grille, and front fog lights, while the rear adds a revised bumper, a new fog lamp design, round twin exhausts, and diffuser. The car sits on a new set of standard 18-inch alloy wheels with chrome inserts. For the interior, Hyundai is offering redesigned leather seats with grey panels, Hyundai’s 7-inch touchscreen satellite navigation system, and, of course, "Turbo" logos embossed on the driver’s and passenger’s seats.

2012 Hyundai Equus Limousine Security

Hyundai is coming to the upcoming Moscow International Automobile Salon with a very cool armored version of the Equus sedan. The new limo was developed in cooperation with Stoof International GmbH in Germany and incorporates an elaborate range of upgraded features specially designed for exclusive stretched limousine with ballistic and blast protection.

The new Hyundai Equus Limousine Security measures 5.46 meters in length and weighs a total of 8465 lbs. The model is equipped with an armored shell designed to fully protect the interior from ballistic penetration from any angle. Hyundai and Stoof paid special attention to those critical areas where the glass is connected to the body components. These areas were designed with special "labyrinth" overlaps protecting the passengers inside from blast projectiles and splinters. The Equus fully complies with VR7 protection level and is ballistically certified to the protection level.

Under the hood, Hyundai has placed a powerful 5.0-liter Tau V8 engine that delivers an impressive 430 HP, allowing the car to deliver impressive dynamics and agility.

2013 Hyundai Genesis Sedan

As Hyundai continues growing its lineup into one that competes with just about every automaker in the market, it is still refreshing its current vehicles. The Genesis is up for a complete overhaul in the 2014 model year, but this doesn’t mean Hyundai will just standby and let their second-in-line sedan just roll into 2013 unchanged.

Hyundai has made a nice handful of changes to the Genesis, most of which the company is writing off as ways to make the lineup more simple. These changes include some mild changes under the hood and some tuning to the interior and technology of the popular sedan. Hyundai also added one huge addition to the inside of the Genesis Sedan that will help make every driver’s life much easier.

So, are these changes enough to keep the Genesis Sedan impressing us media folk? Well, you’re going to have to click past the jump to find out exactly what we think of this slightly revised version.