In terms of fuel cell vehicles, Honda and Toyota have been grabbing most of the attention lately with the new Honda Clarity and Toyota Mirai, but they will soon have more competition. Hyundai already offers a fuel cell version of the Tucson, but its sister brand, Kia is going to get a fuel cell vehicle too.
According to a top Hyundai Group executive, Kia is going to introduce a new fuel cell vehicle in about three years. The vehicle will be introduced after the next Hyundai fuel cell vehicle, which is going to debut sometime in 2018.
Related: 2017 Honda Clarity vs 2017 Toyota Mirai (Review)
“We thought that was good timing to introduce a fuel cell to the market in Kia,” stated Lee Ki-sang, senior vice president of the Eco Technology Center developing cars for Hyundai and Kia. “In the meantime, we will reduce the material costs dramatically.”
Hyundai decided to introduce the new Hyundai fuel cell vehicle first, since the Hyundai brand is more upscale and can easily absorb the extra costs associated with the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Hyundai hopes that costs will fall further by the time the Kia version is introduced.
Last month, Hyundai previewed its next fuel cell vehicle with the FE fuel cell concept at the Geneva Motor Show.
Source: Automotive News
