The future of Hyundai will be like a chess set, and with everything from chariots and bishops to knights and kings, it will all be tied together.
That’s according to Hyundai’s design boss, Simon Loasby. The Korean automaker’s vice president of design sat down with Green car report at the 2021 LA auto show to discuss the automaker’s future technology and design language and how it all works together.
Hyundai Seven concept
Pixels
NS Seven concepts that Hyundai debuted at the LA auto show doesn’t look like 2022 Ioniq 5 is coming to the US in December, but it’s obviously related. Similar stories to Ioniq 6 coming soon, which previewed by the concept of Prophecy. That’s the purpose, according to Loasby.
Ioniq Series, part of Hyundai’s upcoming sub-brand of electric vehicles, will be tied together and distinguished by its pixel-lit design. “Whenever you see a pixel, you don’t have to see the rest of the car. You know it’s the Ioniq. It’s the Hyundai, because only we do it,” Loasby said when we asked. sitting on a leather couch- around the back seat inside the Seven concept.
According to Loasby, the best way to describe the future Hyundai Ioniq lineup is like a game of chess. All the pieces look different, and they move differently, but they all play chess. The basis of the parts of these cars, the same, but they are used differently. They all belong to the same group, or in this case the same brand, because something binds them together. It’s pixel design theme.
The origin of the pixel is actually from a 600-year-old language, according to Loasby. The Hangul language, the alphabet in Korea, looks different from any other language because King Sejong took the writing system and democratized it to make it a set of 23 letters. One of those letters is a perfect pixel.
Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP Platform
Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP Platform
Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP Platform
Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP Platform
The base or architecture that Loasby references is Hyundai Group’s E-GMP Platform, will be the foundation for the future of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis. It served as the foundation for the upcoming Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Genesis GV60. It will also underpin Hyundai’s Ioniq 6, Ioniq 7, Kia EV9 and other Genesis models. The E-GMP platform is one to keep an eye on as it has 800 volt hardware that allows it to return 62 miles in as little as 5 minutes
While some automakers, like Mercedes-Benz, are taking a one-size-fits-all approach, Loasby says that idea forces people to match the vehicle type and brand. Hyundai’s plan is to focus on use cases for each upcoming vehicle instead of forcing each vehicle to look the same with similar shapes.
Beyond the pixels, there will be subtle design cues that tie the Ioniq lineup together, but it will require a sharp eye and, in some ways, creative thinking. On the side of the Ioniq 5 there is a very sharp diagonal fold. That diagonal fold will appear in other Ioniq models, but it will not be used in the same way. On the Seven concept, it is located in the middle of the rear door leading to the rear fender.
“I call it the Hanbok line,” Loasby said as he slashed straight into the air. In Korea, on a traditional dress, or traditional dress, this is called a Hanbok, and it features a collar with a single diagonal, as seen in the Ioniq 5 concept and now Seven. It’s a bit small, but very modern, in a different way Korean, doesn’t look old or nostalgic, and Loasby is quite proud of its integration.
Hyundai Seven concept
Hygiene is the future
The Seven concept places a big emphasis on hygiene, which makes sense during these Covid-19 times, but Loasby says the technology and hygiene focus in Seven is not some sort of sky-high concept. It will come to future production models.
The South Korean capital Seoul, where Hyundai’s headquarters is located, has never experienced a lockdown or mass closure during the Covid-19 outbreak. “Hygiene is something they are really good at,” says Loasby, and that is something the future depends on.
Hyundai Seven concept
Hyundai Seven concept
Hyundai Seven concept
Hyundai Seven concept
The Seven concept has a “cleaning mode” that disinfects the interior when you leave the car. All light switches to UVC mode to kill viruses and bacteria, so the vehicle can be set to self-clean. The interior has two separate ventilation units so that front row occupants never breathe the same air as those in the back. The system is designed to be similar to what one would find in an airplane with a thin vent that lets air out from the dashboard up the front or from the ceiling at the back to empty the passengers. . The vents around the base of the car floor draw air out of the cabin similar to the indoor air vents. “We evaluated an aircraft for this system, because it’s really a really clean environment because you recycle the air,” says Loasby.
The interior decoration of the Seven concept is made of copper, which is itself an inhibitory material for viruses and bacteria. Hyundai is working with copper and pushing engineers to see what’s feasible for production. “You can weave copper into fabric. You can weave copper into recycled PET bottle fabric,” says Loasby. And while copper isn’t cheap, it doesn’t cost much these days, especially if it’s hidden or used sparingly.
Hyundai Seven concept
Sustainable construction and materials
It is clear that the interior of the Seven concept is the concept. It is designed around Level 4 self-driving capability, does not exist in production today. But, the flexible, reconfigurable interior? Loasby says such a thing could be designed in the future and meet crash test standards.
A reconfigurable interior could dramatically change the way people use the space in their car. Karim Habib, Senior Vice President and Head of Design Center at Kia, Habib said GCR that an electric vehicle without a b-pillar is usable and that it can be engineered to pass crash tests. Issuer? EV platform. Having battery power at the base with a focused center of gravity and a sturdy frame could allow a new, modern vehicle to be designed without a b-pillar, a feat unheard of in decades due to Modern crash tests and safety standards.
Hyundai Seven concept
According to Loasby, while customers still view top models as leather, that’s a trend that needs and will change. “We want to change that because wool is so sustainable.” The Seven concept has seats upholstered in fleece and has some brass weaves embedded in the threads. “Nobody said ‘Oh, that doesn’t look high-end’. Everyone was like, ‘Wow, this could work,'” Loasby said excitedly.The carpet in the Seven concept is silk bamboo while the wood trim is bamboo; both are sustainable and look premium as if they belonged in a luxury vehicle
Electricity of the future, that was already obvious. Loasby sees a rapid transition over the next decade. Hyundai has set the flagship in terms of design and it’s in pixel form. Different, engaging and interesting in a nostalgic yet futuristic way.
But it was one question the moderator posed to me during our discussion that really got me thinking as I walked out of the Hyundai booth and for days afterward, “Are you willing to pay to This is an important point,” Loasby added.
While Hyundai has yet to reveal much about pricing plans for the Ioniq models, and there will be plenty of other reasons why they’ll stand out, we’ll learn more about the company’s launch moves soon.
