Hyundai Motor Co. and sister company Kia Motors Corp. will be offering additional powertrain setups, featuring more turbocharged gasoline engines and new transmissions in the U.S. and elsewhere, according to their parent Hyundai Motor Group. The group also disclosed that it intends to expand its lineup of diesel-powered vehicles, but it did not reveal in which markets. The group also did not elaborate when the new engines and transmissions will be available. In 2011, Bloomberg reported that Hyundai was developing a 10-speed automatic transmission for luxury vehicles starting in 2014. Hyundai has introduced eight-speed automatic gearboxes in the Hyundai Genesis and Equus upscale sedans, and six-speed automatic and manual transmissions for its mainstream units.
The group outlined its global future powertrain plans in its announcement last Tuesday, which coincided with the 2012 Hyundai-Kia International Powertrain Conference in South Korea. The recent overhaul of Hyundai's and Kia's vehicle lineups has resulted to introductions of new engine and transmission technologies.
For instance, gasoline direct-injection technologies as well as six-speed automatic and manual transmissions are employed in each brand's lineup, from the Kia Rio to Hyundai Sonata. The group wants to be able to maintain its momentum while rivals like Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., are currently scrambling to bring new, more efficient transmissions and direct-injection engines to the market.
