Hyundai Motor produced 100 million units for 57 years

Hyundai Motor has reached a cumulative production of 100 million units 57 years after entering the automotive industry in 1967. Starting from its early days of producing Ford's Cortina, this achievement was accomplished in less than 60 years. Hyundai achieved this milestone faster than any other major automaker. In comparison, Toyota and Volkswagen, which ranked first and second in global sales last year, took 60 and 68 years, respectively.

Hyundai Motor's rapid growth is attributed to the company's unique spirit of challenge. This spirit of 'Hey, have you tried it?' (a quote from Hyundai Motor founder and late Chairman Chung Ju-yung) has been passed down as a heritage from the first chairman to honorary Chairman Chung Mong-koo, and now to the current Chairman Chung Eui-sun.

Despite internal opposition and skepticism, Chung Ju-yung pushed ahead with developing the Pony, Korea's first self-produced car. After its mass production began in 1975, the Pony ushered in the 'my car era,' which signifies the popularization of automobiles. From its first year on the market, the Pony was popular, selling more than 10,000 units annually, and in 1986, Hyundai Motor set a record by producing one million units across all models.

Since honorary Chairman Chung Mong-koo took up the post in 1999, Hyundai Motor has aggressively expanded into overseas markets. In line with his inaugural statement, “We will become a world-class brand,” Chung Mong-koo has prioritized quality by establishing a quality situation room at the Yangjae headquarters to gain the trust of consumers around the world. In 2013, Hyundai Motor reached a cumulative production volume of 50 million vehicles, having completed overseas factories in India (1998), Alabama, the U.S. (2005), the Czech Republic (2009), Russia (2010), and Brazil (2012), and begun local production.

In 2015, when Chung Eui-sun was vice chairman, Hyundai Motor launched its luxury car brand, Genesis, and its high-performance vehicle brand, Hyundai N, as part of a strategy to position Hyundai Motor as a luxury automaker. Chung Eui-sun reportedly spearheaded this initiative from the early planning stages. Since 2020, when Chung officially took over as head of Hyundai Motor Group, the company has been accelerating its electrification efforts, launching electric vehicles based on its E-GMP platform, including the Ioniq 5.

Hyundai Motor has a lot of work to do if it wants to become a 'first mover' in the electrification era. It needs to respond quickly to the rapid changes in the automotive industry, including competition from Chinese electric vehicles and mobility innovations. “Hyundai Motor has set a new direction to become a mobility provider that encompasses hardware and software, including autonomous driving services, rather than just an ordinary automaker,” said Lee Hang-koo, head of the Jeonbuk Institute of Automotive Convergence Technology. “It will need to secure the appropriate technological competitiveness and gain an edge in competition with Chinese brands that are emerging as new competitors.”


Jae-Hyeng Kim monami@donga.com