joe80

Hyundai has decided to release a single rendering of its i-Flow concept ahead of its big reveal at next month's Geneva Motor Show. To our eyes, the i-Flow looks to be the logical evolution of the Korean automaker's recent "fluidic sculpture" design philosophy, as seen on the new 2011 Sonata and sister-company Kia's Ray concept, which is currently being shown off at the Chicago Auto Show.

Actual details on the i-Flow are still pretty hard to come by, but Hyundai says this concept will preview its new D-segment car that will go up against the likes of the Ford Mondeo in Europe. As such, we certainly wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of diesel powertrain, or possibly even a hybrid system assisted by the i-Flow's BASF-supplied solar cells.

We'll have live photos of the new Hyundai i-Flow concept come March 2nd, but in the meantime, click on the image above to see it in high resolution and click past the break to read the official press release.


http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/12/g...sheet-pulling/

joe80

very consistent with gen coupe, sonata, & tucson. I'm really liking hyundai's new fluidic sculpture design direction.

spwolf

back lines remind me of mondeo...

joe80

just a random thought, but that fluidic sculpture design direction actually started in 90's with hyundai tiburon. it had 2 swoopy character lines which was very provocative when it first came out. it looked weird, but it sure did look like a 'shark'.

dunnojack

lets see how close the actual concept is to this rendering....

looks interesting. pushing the styling

joe80

yeah. it will be significantly toned down.



this was sonata's rendering. design language is the same. hope hyundai continues to be aggressive on design. they have nothing to lose.

TRDFantasy

Not a fan at all of the odd proportions and oversized rear end.

I strongly disagree. Hyundai has quite a bit to lose, such as the momentum they have built so far over the past few years. Also Hyundai risks losing some of their current customers who bought the cars based on value by alienating them with aggressive styling and increased pricing.

joe80

Price is still the best in its class. and hyundai has the best incentives. having some character on cars won't hurt especially if this is a next azera. no one bought previous azera anyway.

and seriously dude, sonata and tucson looks great in person. go check it out. it's not going to alienate typical hyundai buyers. new styling is just a gravy.

i'm gonna bump this thread if both sonata and tucson fails to sell.

joe80

front is bit too wild for my taste. hope they tone it down.

GSteg

iTrader: (15)

I'm loving Hyundai's new designs so far, especially the proportions and the front end.

Go Hyundai!

TRDFantasy

This is a bit of a strange concept. The front is way too busy. I wonder what, if any, production models this concept is hinting at.

It's not going to alienate typical Hyundai buyers? You don't know that for sure. It may very well attract new buyers, but there is no guarantee it won't alienate typical Hyundai buyers.

Price is no longer best in class, sorry. I already proved in a previous thread the Sonata is not best in class price-wise.

The Veracruz is also not best in class either. The Highlander starts at a lower MSRP than the Veracruz, as do some competitors.

joe80

again, previous vanilla azera was as bland as it can get with a great pricing, but no one bothered to take a look at it. more bold styling won't hurt the new azera sales because it can't get any worse than previous gen.


and Santa fe was a direct highlander competitor.

joe80

again, i'm not including non competitors. only those sonata is going against directly. even they didn't bother to mention mazda6, legacy, kizashi and etc on their press.

if you include every midsize cars then optima is the price leader.

TRDFantasy

This is incorrect. Sante Fe is not a direct Highlander competitor. Santa Fe does not have a third row. Veracruz has a third row, and the Highlander also offers a third row.

The Sante Fe is only slightly larger than a Rav 4. There is no direct Toyota model that competes with the Santa Fe, but the closest competitor is the Rav 4.

Highlander dimensions:

Length: 188.4 in.
Width: 75.2 in.
Height: 68.1 in.

Veracruz dimensions:

Length: 190.6 in.
Width: 76.6 in.
Height: 68.9 in.

Santa Fe dimensions:

Length: 184.4 in.
Width: 74.4 in.
Height: 67.9 in.

As you can see, the Highlander is very close to the Veracruz in terms of length. The Santa Fe is quite a bit shorter.

TRDFantasy

How are they "non" competitors? If they're in the midsize class, then they ARE competitors. If you meant to say only major competitors, then that's a little different.