Hyundai Aiming To Release All-Electric “Prius Fighter” Before End Of 2016
Originally published on EV Obsession.
Hyundai will be offering an all-electric (EV) version of its soon-to-be-released “Prius fighter” — a vehicle intended to compete with the Toyota Prius, as you can probably guess — according to recent reports.
The aerodynamically efficient hatchback is, according to the unspecified source, going to be released before the end of 2016. When asked to comment on the rumor, Hyundai reps reportedly declined.
As it stands currently, Hyundai only offers one electric vehicle — the plug-in hybrid version of the 2016 Hyundai Sonata, which possesses an all-electric range of only 24 miles and was unveiled in January of this year.
Hyundai has previously revealed its intent to release its “Prius fighter” (reportedly featuring some of the design elements of the company’s next Elantra subcompact sedan) sometime later this year. It’s not clear if that’s still the target and that the electric version will follow afterwards, or if the release date has been revised and the two versions will be released closer together.
As far as the reason to release the (as yet unconfirmed) all-electric version of its “Prius fighter,” that seems rather simple: Toyota has no official plans to release an all-electric model in the American market. That means that Hyundai can position itself as the electric alternative.
An interesting idea. I’m curious to see how the strategy pans out (assuming that there is any truth to the rumors, and, if so, things continue moving forward). Anybody have any thoughts? Or care to make any predictions?
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