India|April'2009:
Shah Rukh Khan, the brand ambassador for Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL),
the country’s second largest car manufacturer and the largest passenger
car exporter, will now be seen travelling in Hyundai vehicles for the
whole of IPL season.
At a ceremony in Cape Town, Alan Ross, MD, Hyundai Motor, South Africa,
handed over the car keys to the Bollywood superstar and owner of the IPL
team Kolkata Knight Riders Shah Rukh Khan. He will be using the Hyundai
Tucson for himself and his entourage in South Africa throughout the IPL
season.
Commenting on the occasion Arvind Saxena, Sr. Vice President, Marketing &
Sales, HMIL said, “Shah Rukh Khan has been the face of Hyundai ever since
the Korean Auto Major made its entry into India with the launch of its
flagship brand Santro. SRK association with Hyundai has been one of the
longest associations not only for an automobile company but for any brand
in India and has helped Hyundai become a popular and easily recognisable
brand. And as a goodwill gesture we are happy to facilitate all his
travels in South Africa during the IPL season in comfortable Hyundai
cars.”
In CY 2008, Hyundai Motor India exported around 10,000 units of Santro and
the i10 to South Africa. The i10 and the Santro are also the best selling
models in the small car segment in South African market. SRK and his guest
will have exclusive use of the Hyundai cars throughout their stay in South
Africa.
About HMIL
Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai
Motor Company, South Korea and is the second largest car manufacturer and
the largest passenger car exporter from India. HMIL presently markets 33
variants of passenger cars across segments. The Santro in the B segment,
the Getz Prime, i10 and the Premium hatchback i20 in the B+ segment, the
Accent and the Verna in the C segment, the Sonata in the E segment and the
Tucson in the SUV segment.
Hyundai Motor India, continuing its tradition of being the fastest growing
passenger car manufacturer, registering total sales of 489,328 vehicles in
the calendar year (CY) 2008, an increase of 49.6 percent over CY 2007. In
the domestic market it clocked a growth of 22.4 percent as compared to
2007 with 245,397 units, while overseas sales grew by 92.5 percent, with
exports of 243,931 units.
HMIL's fully integrated state-of-the-art manufacturing plant near Chennai
boasts of the most advanced production, quality and testing capabilities
in the country. In continuation of its commitment to provide the Indian
customer with global technology, HMIL commissioned its second plant in
February 2008 which produces an additional 300,000 units per annum,
raising HMIL's total production capacity to 600,000 units per annum.
HMIL has invested to expand capacity in line with its positioning as HMC's
global export hub for compact cars. Apart from the expansion of production
capacity, HMIL currently has 253 strong dealer network across India, which
will be further bolstered in 2009.
In 2008, HMIL also successfully completed 10 glorious years of operations
in India and to commemorate its achievements, initiated a unique
trans-continental drive from Delhi to Paris in two of its hugely popular
i10 Kappa cars. The drive created automobile history by completing a
distance of 10,000km in just 17 days after which the i10s were showcased
at the Paris Motor Show in October. In fact it was at the Paris Motor Show
that HMIL first unveiled the Hyundai i20 and the car received a phenomenal
response from the auto enthusiasts across the world. Hyundai Motor India
also accomplished the landmark of producing the fastest 20th lakh cars in
India in 2008.
Like 2008, the year 2007 had also been a significant year for Hyundai
Motor India. It achieved a significant milestone by rolling out the
fastest 400,000th export car. Hyundai exported to over 100 countries
globally; even as it plans to continue its thrust in existing export
markets, it is gearing up to step up its foray into new markets. 2007 also
saw the launch of the i10 and yet another path-breaking record in its
young journey by rolling out the fastest 1,500,000th car.
Hyundai's new model i10 made a clean sweep of all the 'Car of the Year
2008' awards from the leading automotive magazines and TV channels like BS
Motoring, CNBC-TV18 AutoCar, NDTV Profit Car & Bike India and Overdrive
magazine. The i10 was also the choice of the discerning automotive media
of the country as they conferred the prestigious 'Indian Car of the Year'
(ICOTY) award to the i10 as well.
The Santro and the Accent also received the 'TNS Voice of the Customer -
2008' award for the Premium Compact Car (Santro) and the Entry Mid size
Car (Accent). In March 2008 it achieved yet another milestone by rolling
out the fastest 500,000th export car.
In 2007, the Hyundai Verna had also bagged some of the most prestigious
awards starting with the Overdrive magazine's 'Car of the Year 2007', the
'Best Mid-size Car of the Year' award from NDTV Profit Car & Bike India,
the 'Best Value for Money Car' from CNBC Autocar and 'Performance Car of
the Year' from Business Standard Motoring.
Hyundai cars have been a favorite at all awards ceremonies and has won
many awards. The Sonata Embera won the 'Executive Car of The Year 2006'
award from Business Standard Motoring magazine and NDTV Profit Car & Bike
India had declared the Tucson as the 'SUV of The Year 2006'.
Not only this, HMIL has also been awarded the benchmark ISO 14001
certification for its sustainable environment management practices.
Reachout's News Bureau
April' 2009
