Hyundai hybrids take aim at Toyota

Toyota’s domination of the hybrid vehicle segment in Australia is about to come under serious attack from Hyundai.

The Korean brand has confirmed the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid is just the start of its fuel-saving petrol-electric tech roll-out locally.

While the hybrid Santa Fe will aim directly at the Toyota Kluger Hybrid, more Hyundai hybrids will be added at major overhauls of significant members of the local line-up.

“I think hybrids are looking very positive across the range,” Hyundai Australia head of future product and future business group Andrew Tuitahi revealed to carsales.

“I can’t confirm any timings just yet.

“You should expect to see at our new model timings and major facelifts [that] hybrids start to appear across most of our key models.”

The Toyota RAV4 Hybrid-rivalling Hyundai Tucson Hybrid medium SUV is at the top of that list of expected arrivals and other probables and possibles include the Kona Hybrid small SUV (aimed at the Toyota C-HR and upcoming Corolla Cross hybrids), the Corolla-sized i30 Hybrid small sedan and the Camry-targeting Sonata Hybrid medium sedan on offer overseas.

A 48-volt mild-hybrid version of the popular Hyundai i30 hatchback is also on sale overseas.

The Tucson had previously been ruled out because it was only built in Europe in a shorter wheelbase, but lobbying by Hyundai Australia to source an Australian-sized version from Korea appears to have borne fruit.

The out-of-production IONIQ hybrid has recently been dropped from the local line-up along with the IONIQ PHEV and EV.

At the same time, it appears Hyundai Australia has gone cold on plug-in hybrids, although a “review” of PHEVs is officially still happening.

That means the Santa Fe and Tucson PHEVs are at best unlikely for Australia.

A focus on hybrids rather than PHEVs would make sense as plug-in vehicles aren’t selling well in Australia. Instead, buyers tend to opt for hybrids that are much cheaper or electric vehicles that are not that much more expensive.

Hyundai is pushing its EV line-up hard with the IONIQ 5 already on sale and the IONIQ 6 sedan, IONIQ 7 large SUV and high-performance IONIQ 5 N all on the way. 

A lack of enthusiasm for PHEVs tallies with local Mercedes-Benz policy, but is diametrically opposed to the strategy of brands like Mitsubishi and, soon, Jeep.

Toyota started selling the Prius hybrid in Australia more than 20 years ago. That model has now been dropped as plugless petrol-electric tech has spread through the range.

The RAV4 Hybrid is the biggest seller, but the Camry, Corolla, Yaris, Yaris Cross, C-HR, Kluger and forthcoming Corolla Cross also boast the tech within their model lines. 

Both the Santa Fe and Hyundai Tucson hybrid models are powered by a turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine operating in tandem with a 44kW electric motor drawing current from a self-charging 1.5kWh lithium-ion battery. Combined outputs for both are 169kW/350Nm.

By comparison, the RAV4 combines a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with an electric motor to produce 160kW as a 2WD or 163kW as an AWD.

Of course, there are other players entering the hybrid arena. Chinese brand GWM Haval has recently launched two petrol-electric models, the H6 and Jolion.

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