Hyundai’s new car designs will be more emotional

Hyundai isn’t satisfied with being labeled as a value marque. It wants to make its cars more emotionally appealing, sexy even.

SangYup Lee took over as Hyundai Motor’s VP of design in 2016. He has a bold vision for the future of the Korean automaker’s vehicles when it comes to exterior design. In an interview with Automotive News, Lee said that he wants the new Hyundai models to be more emotional in terms of design. He said he wants Hyundai’s designs to be as “sexy” as Alfa Romeo’s. That’s a pretty big mountain to climb.

If there’s one man to make that happen, it seems that Lee would be it. His work in the automotive industry is impressive. He worked on the fifth-generation Chevrolet Camaro and the C6 Corvette Stingray concept. He also worked on the Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 concept. It’s clear he knows a thing or two about emotional and sexy automobile design.

Emotional Products Sell

Lee told Automotive News that a car purchase is emotional, that cars are emotional products. Hyundai will seek to “maximize emotionally value. He pointed to Alfa Romeo and Maserati as brands that do a good job of selling emotional, sexy automobiles. He said this kind of appeal is lacking in volume brands.

Part of the strategy to bring emotion to Hyundai’s brands will be to get rid of what Lee calls the “family look.” This is when every single car a brand sells has more or less the same face. Hyundai has done this in the past, but Lee says the future lineups of the Korean automaker’s brands won’t follow this design principle. He said he would like to see the lineup to be more like a chess set. Each model will be distinctly different but work as a team.

Different Brands Will Have Different Aesthetics

Genesis, Hyundai, and Kia are all Hyundai Motor’s brands. They will each be different, with the Genesis brand, the newest and only designated luxury brand, standing out.

“Genesis has to be completely separate,” said Lee.

Lee has a unique opportunity with the Genesis brand because he and his team will be able to build its design heritage from the ground up. The brand is new and has no history. Lee said his team has what he calls a “bible” but that they will be creating the heritage that the brand will use for years to come.

With all this in mind, it will be interesting to see how Hyundai’s different brands evolve and how its cars change over time. Lee said the first cars to have this new design Hyundai design will come next year. He said the Le Fil Rogue concept is the first car to signal the shift.