Hyundai locks in seven-year/unlimited-km warranty

Hyundai Australia has formally announced a service-activated seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty as its new boss looks to up the ante and keep the Korean brand as competitive as possible.

Hyundai has stepped-up its aftersales game and adopted a seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty program which, on face value, puts it on terms with sister brand Kia, as well as GWM, Skoda, KGM and Chery.

But whereas those brands offer seven years coverage from the outset, Hyundai’s new arrangement requires a vehicle to have been maintained on schedule by an official Hyundai service centre from day dot, with the extra years (up to two) added accordingly.

“To be eligible for the full seven-year coverage, owners are required to have all scheduled services (from the first service onwards) completed by an authorised Hyundai dealer,” a spokesperson said.

The flipside of this requirement is that the ‘extended new car warranty’ also applies to and covers the vehicle for corrosion, paint durability and the multimedia system; all areas or items not typically covered for the full warranty period like engine or driveline components are.

N cars and their non-competitive use on track are also included under the new program, meaning new i20 and i30 N owners are covered for up to seven years of track days.

The Staria Load is the only model exempt from the seven-year coverage – being a commercial vehicle – and retains its previous five-year/160,000km arrangement, with the same true of other vehicles used for “commercial purposes”, i.e. taxi, ride-share, rental, courier, driving school, tour bus etc.

As Australia’s auto industry continues to saturate with a wave of new players, legacy brands like Hyundai are having to reevaluate their strategies to stay ahead of the curve.

Hyundai’s move to a seven-year warranty had been on the cards for months and could now prompt other legacy makes like Ford, Mazda, Toyota and Subaru to expand their own aftersales programs, especially since Nissan recently moved to a 10-year/300,000km (service-activated) warranty.

Mitsubishi is the other big player on this front; offering 10 years coverage up to 200,000km (two five-year/100,000km blocks back-to-back pending correct servicing).

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