Hyundai Motor Company is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer which is currently the third largest vehicle manufacturer in the world. The company develops and sells automobiles, luxury cars, commercial vehicles, and engines as well. The company has also ventured into developing and manufacturing hybrid and electric vehicles such as the Hyundai BlueOn and Hyundai Sonata Hybrid.
History
Chung Ju-Yung (1915–2001) founded the Hyundai Engineering and Construction Company in 1947. Hyundai Motor Company was later established in 1967, and the company's first model, the Cortina, was released in cooperation with Ford Motor Company in 1968. When Hyundai wanted to develop their own car, they hired George Turnbull in February 1974, the former managing director of Austin Morris at British Leyland. He in turn hired five other top British car engineers. They were body designer Kenneth Barnett, engineers John Simpson and Edward Chapman, John Crosthwaite, formerly of BRM, as chassis engineer and Peter Slater as chief development engineer. In 1975, the Pony, the first South Korean car, was released, with styling by Giorgio Giugiaro of ItalDesign and powertrain technology provided by Japan's Mitsubishi Motors. Exports began in the following year to Ecuador and soon thereafter to the Benelux countries. Hyundai entered the British market in 1982, selling 2993 cars in their first year there.
In 1984, Hyundai began exporting the Pony to Canada, but not to the United States, as the Pony would not pass emissions standards there. Canadian sales greatly exceeded expectations, and it was at one point the top-selling car on the Canadian market. In 1985, the one millionth Hyundai car was built. Until the 1986 introduction of the larger Hyundai Grandeur, Hyundai offered a locally assembled Ford Granada for the South Korean executive market. The import of these knocked down kits was permitted as long as Hyundai exported five cars for every single Granada brought in (the same demands were placed on Kia).
