Hyundai reveals new compact for Brazil

Hyundai has revealed the first teaser image of an all-new compact hatchback to enter production in Brazil next month, dubbed the HB20.

Due on sale in the South American country in October but not destined for western markets like Australia, the HB20 – which stands for ‘Hyundai Brazil’, followed by the number used globally to identify a vehicle size that is similar to our i20 – will be followed by sedan and crossover wagon versions due on sale in Brazil next year.

Hyundai Motor Company Australia has made it clear the i20 and Accent light cars will remain the smallest models it offers here for the foreseeable future, with an upcoming facelift of the smaller i10 also off the agenda for Australia.

The South Korean car-maker says all three versions of the HB – which will be built at a new plant in Piracicaba, in the countryside of São Paulo State – were developed exclusively for the Brazilian market jointly by Brazilian and Korean engineers.

Hyundai’s first manufacturing plant in Brazil follows an investment of $A570 million, spans 69,000 square-metres and a total area of 1.4 million square-metres, and makes the developing nation the seventh country outside Korea in which it builds vehicles.

Hyundai Motor Brazil already has more than 1000 Brazilian employees – a number that’s estimated to increase to 2000 by 2013, by which time a further 3000 local supply jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs are expected to be created

As the teaser image reveals, the HB will bear Hyundai’s ‘fluidic sculpture’ exterior design theme, and will be powered by ethanol-capable 1.0-litre and 1.6-litre ‘flex fuel’ engines, with an automatic transmission option for 1.6-litre versions.

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