Hyundai ix-Metro, first hybrid and electric car

By Tim Pollard

First Official Pictures

04 September 2009 00:01

Hyundai is taking aim at Nissan's Qazana with its new ix-Metro concept car at the 2009 Frankfurt motor show. The compact utility vehicle is one of a burgeoning number of small 4x4s in the pipeline – and is set for production within two years.

The Hyundai ix-Metro will drop its BL/Rover inspired name and instead adopt the ix-15 or ix-25 moniker when production starts, slotting in neatly under the new, Tucson-replacing ix-35.

Hyundai ix-Metro: the first photos

These first renderings reveal a stubby crossover, bristling with Hyundai's latest styling cues. That's the BMW-esque body surfacing, with entrenched banana sills and the company's new hexagonal grille. The ix35 is the first production car to have the latest family face, but it will stretch to every new Hyundai, according to the design chief.

The ix-Metro is one of nine new Hyundais coming in a fast and furious new product offensive, vowed Hyundai Europe vice president Allan Rushforth. The nine new models arrive in 13 months, starting from October 2010.

What else is new at Frankfurt on the Hyundai stand?

The Hyundai i10 EV is the company's first electric vehicle. They've ripped out the petrol powerplant and stuffed in a homegrown electric motor and state of the art lithium ion polymer batteries from Korean firm LG.

It's designed primarily for the domestic Korean market, where trial production starts in 2010, but Hyundai Europe is keen to get models over here for evaluation in urban areas such as London. One big stumbling block is the price; the batteries alone on current costings would weigh in at around $16,000.

Hyundai will also show off its first hybrid car, an Elantra fitted with an LPG-electric powertrain. Autogas is popular in Korea, where the car is sold, but Hyundai is showing it in Frankfurt to underline its eco credentials. The company has vowed to lower its fleet average CO2 emissions in Europe to 95g/km by 2020.

Expect plenty more electric Hyundais to come, then.

By Tim Pollard