Retail News CRM

Tag: cars

  • Vietnamese car maker plans private share issue

    Vietnamese car maker plans private share issue

    Truong Hai Auto Corporation (THACO) is planning to issue more than 30.3 million shares to a strategic shareholder. The company is currently collecting shareholders’ opinions on a draft resolution to authorize a private placement worth an estimated total of VND3.89 trillion ($167.19 million) to Jardine Cycle & Carriage, a Singaporean diversified conglomerate that specializes in investment in car manufacturing.

    The share issue aims to raise additional capital to finance THACO’s investment and business plans this year, the company said in a circular issued to shareholders last week.

    The 30.3 million shares proposed in this placement make up 1.82 percent of THACO’s current chartered capital, and will raise the Singaporean shareholder’s stake in the car manufacturer to 26.57 percent.

    The share ownership of remaining shareholders will remain unchanged. Currently, 6.8 percent of THACO is owned by billionaire Tran Ba Duong, founder and chairman of the company, and another 60.6 percent by Tran Oanh JSC, a holding company owned by Duong and his family.

    The shares are expected to be issued soon after the State Securities Commission has confirmed the receipt of all documentation regarding the private placement.

    Dong Nai-based THACO was established as an auto and commercial vehicle maker in 1997. It has a plant in central province of Quang Nam and 89 showrooms and 53 dealerships.

    It makes trucks and buses and assembles cars for brands like Kia (South Korea), Mazda (Japan), and Peugeot (France).

    Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd, which is part of the Jardine Group of companies, has a diverse business portfolio. They have long term shareholdings in major manufacturers such as Jakarta based Astra International, as well as other interests in the refrigeration, cement and milk business.

    In Singapore, Jardine C&C is best known as the retailer of Mercedes Benz, Mitsubishi, Kia, Citroen, DS, and Maxus motor vehicles. The company has a current market capitalisation of S$14.55 billion (US$10.71 billion).

    Lees ook:

  • Mercedes back in No. 4 spot on E-class sales in Korea

    Mercedes back in No. 4 spot on E-class sales in Korea

    Mercedes-Benz outsold local carmakers in Korea to finish fourth in domestic sales in January, industry data showed Monday. The Korean unit of the German automaker sold 5,796 vehicles last month, equal to 4 percent of the total 114,632 vehicles. The sum places it fourth after Hyundai Motor (31.2 percent), Kia Motors (22.8 percent) and SsangYong Motor (6.1 percent).

    January sales for Mercedes-Benz Korea shrank 22.8 percent compared with the month before, but they were still higher than the monthly sales by Renault Samsung Motors (3.5 percent) and GM Korea (3.1 percent).

    The last time that the German brand reached No. 4 in monthly sales was back in April last year, a ranking that followed the closure of a local assembly plant by GM Korea two months earlier. Mercedes-Benz defended the ranking for three months before slipping to No. 6 in May last year.

    In yearly sales, Mercedes-Benz Korea sold 70,798 units for a market share of 4.5 percent last year, behind Renault Samsung (5.7 percent) and GM Korea (5.5 percent).

    Industry watchers attribute the sales increase to the success of the E-Class. January sales of the lineup were the 12th highest at 3,392 units, a number meaning that one E-Class vehicle was sold for every three Grandeur autos from Hyundai Motor purchased.

    The E-Class cars outsold Genesis, an independent brand launched by Hyundai that is pitted as its domestic rival, last year.

    The “diesel-gate” scandal that pounded German brands also helped promote the E-Class, which are mostly gasoline cars,

    “This year, BMW and Audi are scheduled to release new sedans, and a full-change Genesis G80 is also due soon,” one source noted. “This will likely affect the sales of the E-Class.”

  • Korea automobile production falls for 3rd year in 2018

    Korea automobile production falls for 3rd year in 2018

    Korea’s auto production tumbled for a third consecutive year in 2018 amid weaker domestic and global demand, data showed Sunday. According to the data by the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA), Korea produced 4.03 million vehicles last year, down 2.1 percent from the previous year. The figure has been decreasing over the past three years from 4.56 million in 2015 to 4.23 million in 2016 and 4.12 in 2017.

    The 2018 figure put Korea as the seventh-largest car manufacturing country in the world, down one notch from the previous year, according to the association.

    Korea became the world’s fifth-largest maker of cars in 2005 and retained the ranking until 2015. But India edged out Korea to stand at the world’s sixth in 2016 and 2017. Last year, Korea fell behind Mexico.

    China was found to produce the largest number of vehicles in 2018, with 27.81 million followed by the United States, Japan, Germany and India.

    Korea’s total car exports also fell to 2.45 million vehicles last year from the previous year’s 2.53 million, the KAMA said, adding that the country accounted for 4.1 percent of the world’s car production in 2018, down 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier.

    “Contentious labor-management relations, as well as stiff labor market conditions, among others, appear to negatively affect local carmakers’ competitiveness,” the association said in a release, calling for state support and business innovation.

    Lees ook:

  • Report urges auto industry to go electric

    Report urges auto industry to go electric

    Korea needs to give equal emphasis to the development of battery electric vehicles and fuel cell cars, considering the estimated future demand and the country’s competitiveness, a report said Thursday. “It’s a well-known fact that our car manufacturers have the mass-production technology for fuel cell automobiles,” the report from the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (KIET) said. “However, the accumulated sales of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) worldwide stopped at 10,000 as of the end of 2018. The demand for fuel cell vehicles in 2030 will be less than 2 percent of the global sales of new automobiles.”

    In comparison, sales of battery electric vehicles (EVs) are estimated to exceed the demand for hybrids this year, 10 years since their commercialization, and show fast-paced growth, the report argued. Global rivals are due to market more than 100 different EV models by 2022, it noted.

    Korea’s high competitiveness in EV batteries is another reason why the government should not neglect investment in electric cars, the report said, warning that the relative weaknesses in the availability of charging stations and other networks could drag down the industry, despite efforts by local automakers to diversify their EV models. The report responded skeptically to the government announcement in December to give 2 trillion won ($1.79 billion) in assistance to reform the car parts industry.

    “If the auto industry, the recipient, is unable to fully accommodate, it could be difficult for the assistance to have the desired effect,” it said.

    The same report predicted hard times ahead for local auto companies, affected by the global slump in the car industry.

    Lees ook:

  • Sales of imported vehicles in Korea fell 10 percent in January

    Sales of imported vehicles in Korea fell 10 percent in January

    Sales of imported vehicles in Korea declined by more than 10 percent in January from a year earlier due to typically low seasonal demand and supply shortage of some brands, industry data showed on Friday. The number of foreign cars sold last month reached 18,198 units, down 13.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (Kaida).

    The tally also marks an 11 percent drop from a month earlier, the data showed. In 2018, sales of foreign cars continued to rise, helped by firm demand for foreign brands and the resumption of sales of Audi Volkswagen.

    The number of newly registered foreign vehicles reached 260,705, up 11.8 percent from 2017.

    Foreign passenger cars made up 16.7 percent of all vehicles that were registered in the country last year, shattering the previous record high of 15.5 percent in 2015.

    Lees ook:

  • Unit price of exported automobiles in Korea up on SUV sales

    Unit price of exported automobiles in Korea up on SUV sales

    The average unit price for exported automobiles last year reached a record high of $15,400, pushed up by the strong performance of sport-utility vehicles (SUVs), according to industry statistics Thursday. Monthly data from the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) put total exports by five local carmakers last year at 2,447,903, down 3.2 percent from the previous year. The monetary sum from the shipments came to $37.68 billion, 1.6 percent less than the year before.

    Despite decreases in both, the unit price of each exported vehicle remained strong thanks to exports of relatively more expensive SUVs, the data indicated, increasing 1.6 percent from 2017.

    Local manufacturers shipped 1,386,539 SUVs last year, up 6.7 percent compared with the year before, setting a new record.

    “The export volume for vehicles shrank from dulled demand in the global market, but it’s fortunate that the export-unit price rose from increased shipments of high value-added cars,” a KAMA official said.

    By manufacturer, Renault Samsung Motors had the highest unit price, at $17,100.

    It was followed by SsangYong Motor, at $17,000. The unit price was $16,200 for Hyundai Motor, $14,900 for Kia Motors and $13,400 for GM Korea.

    Records showed that the unit price rose up to the mid-2010s, rising from $12,000 in 2010 to $14,800 in 2014.

    It pivoted down to $14,200 in 2015 and stayed in a lull in 2016 at the same level before going back up to $15,000 in 2017.

    In terms of export volume, the numbers have been going down since peaking at 3,166,000 in 2012.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • South Korea’s Hyundai bet big on hydrogen technology

    South Korea’s Hyundai bet big on hydrogen technology

    South Korea’s largest carmaker Hyundai Motor is hoping to revive its flagging fortunes by building more hydrogen-powered cars, as part of the country’s bid to become a leader in hydrogen technology by 2040. Last October in the United States, the company launched Nexo, an SUV that goes 609km on a single charge, has no battery, and puts out nothing but water vapour from its exhaust. And in December, it announced it would spend US$6.7 billion from now till 2030 on hydrogen technology.

    But its commitment to hydrogen fuel cell-powered cars is confounding some experts even though they agree the carmaker, the fifth-largest in the world by sales but struggling in the Chinese and American markets, needs to keep innovating.

    Namuh Rhee, former managing director of Merrill Lynch and now a professor at Yonsei University in Seoul, said the focus on hydrogen cars was “questionable” because of the huge costs involved, while “virtually all other global car makers” had made big plans to produce battery-powered electric vehicles (EVs). The country also has a shortage of refilling stations for hydrogen vehicles in comparison to the growing number of charging stations for EVs.

    Figures in the car industry, such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk, had previously called hydrogen cars “mind-bogglingly stupid”, pointing out that developers were looking too far ahead at untested technology, even though the battery-powered solution to cleaner vehicles already existed.

    Hyundai’s plan, though, is aligned with President Moon Jae-in’s strategy to boost the local hydrogen economy. In a speech on January 17, he noted that a major part of the plan would involve ramping up the production of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles, which currently trail battery-powered electric vehicles in popularity.

    Moon promised laws would be modified to allow hydrogen production to thrive, while there would be subsidies to encourage demand for hydrogen-powered vehicles.

    He said the country had produced 1,824 hydrogen cars as of end-2018, with more than half being exported. This year, the number would rise to 4,000, with a goal of 1.8 million cars by 2030.

    The advantages of domestic hydrogen production and distribution, he said, was that it would ease South Korea’s heavy dependence on energy imports – which currently provide 95 per cent of the country’s energy needs.

    “If the country is able to be relatively energy self-sufficient through the hydrogen economy, it will be possible to steer our economic growth more [in a more stable way] and safeguard our energy security more steadfastly,” he said.

    Hyundai, a pillar of the South Korean economy and partially owned by the family that founded it, still needs to prove that hydrogen is the technology of the future, and that it is capable of reinventing itself.

    Last month, the carmaker’s executive vice-chairman Chung Euisun – who is the apparent heir to his father, the company chairman Chung Mong-koo – joined a coalition of CEOs lobbying for hydrogen to be a bigger part of the global energy mix.

    Chung Eui-sun, 48, is now a co-chair of the Hydrogen Council, which counts Chinese oil and gas enterprise Sinopec, American multinational 3M and German automotive firm Daimler among its members.

    At the same time, Hyundai, which commands only 4 per cent of the Chinese and American car markets – down from almost 10 per cent in both a decade earlier – is also building electric vehicles. The company had previously announced it would release 44 models of electric vehicles (EV) by 2025, and last month, the Indonesian government announced the carmaker would set up its first Southeast Asian factory there to build electric cars for both export and domestic use.

    Rhee pointed out Hyundai had been slow to make the transition to EVs and autonomous driving, while other analysts said the company was at least three years behind competitors like Volkswagen, which is set to make electric versions of all its vehicles by 2030, and General Motors, which will have 20 EV models out by 2020.

    To show its commitment to innovation though, the company recently got two vice-chairmen in charge of research and development, both aged 64, to step down in December. It then appointed Albert Biermann, who formerly headed BMW’s M division and created several iconic cars, to head R&D efforts. Other engineers from BMW have also crossed over to join Biermann.

    Seoul-based capital markets analyst Steve Chung, of investment group CLSA, said Hyundai had undergone “massive management reshuffling” with younger people taking control of major functions in the company.

    “Maybe it’s a bit late, but I say better late than never. That’s why the share price has been rebounding,” said Steve Chung, who is not related to the family that founded Hyundai. In 2018, Hyundai Motor’s stock nosedived from its high of over 260,000 Korean won in 2013, to below 95,000 won (US$85) last November. It is now at 129,500 won.

    Ghim Hyunjoon, a company representative, said Hyundai was making great strides in its “cooperation with various start-ups, academics [and the like] to lead the future mobility market”. The carmaker also owns a minority stake in the country’s second-largest car company, Kia Motors.

    Last month, Hyundai took home two top awards from the Detroit Auto Show for best car and best SUV. It also unveiled in Las Vegas the world’s first holographic navigation system, which projects images on to the windscreen to guide drivers through turns and alert them to dangers. The system was born out of a collaboration with Swiss-headquartered augmented reality company WayRay, suggesting the infamously closed-door carmaker is starting to embrace start-ups as it looks to the future.

    Despite its recent wins, the outlook for Hyundai is still challenging, as the younger Chung acknowledged in a New Year’s speech to staff last month. He is expected to soon formally succeed his father, who is 80 years old.

    Analysts suggest the global car market is shrinking. Ageing baby boomers in the US are making fewer new vehicle purchases, while ride-hailing is expected to reduce car ownership overall, according to an industry report from consulting firm Bain & Company.

    Lees ook:

  • Rolls-Royce to bring limited-edition model to Korea

    Rolls-Royce to bring limited-edition model to Korea

    Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the luxury car brand under the BMW Group, said Wednesday it will introduce one of its 35 limited-edition Silver Ghost Collection models in South Korea this month. Rolls-Royce made the limited edition cars to pay homage to the original Silver Ghost from the early 1990s. The car makes use of real silver accents in its interior and exterior to set it apart.

    The forest green-colored limited version to be sold in Seoul carries the phrases “Silver Ghost Since 1907” and “Silver Ghost Collection – One of Thirty-Five” in the car’s interior, the company said in a statement.

    Rolls-Royce began selling its vehicles in Korea 15 years ago. Its current lineup includes the Phantom, Ghost, Wraith, Dawn and Cullinan.

    In 2018, the carmaker sold 123 Rolls-Royce vehicles in Korea, up 43 percent from 86 a year earlier, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.

    Prices and other details were not provided for the limited-edition model.

    Lees ook:

  • SUVs, Crossovers dominate high-end segment in Vietnam

    SUVs, Crossovers dominate high-end segment in Vietnam

    Among consumers willing to spend at least VND1 billion ($43,135), the preference is for SUVs and Crossovers over sedans. In recent years, high ground clearance vehicles have gradually become the number one choice for the majority of Vietnamese consumers, having grown steadily in number sales and variety over the years. In contrast, the D-class sedan segment has seen low demand and limited variety.

    Sales of SUV and Crossovers (CUV) vehicles around the price of VND1 billion ($43,135) have risen steadily over the years. While 2014 saw only around 13,000 units sold, sales had more than doubled by 2018 at 24,264 units. 2018 only saw a slight increase over 2017, but this was because a decree on import conditions prevented many firms from importing these vehicles for most of the year.

    According to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA), consumers have a choice of 10 SUV/CUVs in the VND1 billion price range. Car dealers have noted that almost all brands in Vietnam have at least one product in the SUV/CUV segment.

    Average sales per model was around 3,100 vehicles a year.

    Th SUV/CUV segment is predicted to boom in 2019, as firms get used to the new regulation and find stability in importing new vehicles.

    Meanwhile, from 2014 up to now, the D-size sedan segment has featured the same models, namely, Toyota Camry, Mazda6, Honda Accord, Nissan Teana and the Kia Optima, which was introduced last year.

    In the last 5 years, sales of D-size sedans reached a peak in 2016 at 8,148 units. The introduction of the Kia Optima in 2018 raised the number of models in the segment to 6, but annual sales fell to only 7,612 units.

    In 2018, Toyota Camry dominated the D-segment at over half of the 4,503 units sold, while the remaining models saw little growth. Total sales have nevertheless been fairly stable, hovering around 6,000 or 7,000 over the years.

    Vietnam’s total car sales increased 5.8 percent to 288,683 units in 2018 from a year ago, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA).

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • SsangYong Motor narrows loss in last quarter of 2018

    SsangYong Motor narrows loss in last quarter of 2018

    SsangYong Motor, the Korean unit of Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra, said Thursday its net losses narrowed for the October-December period from a year earlier on a strengthened lineup. Net losses reached 3.99 billion won ($3.59 million) in the fourth quarter from 30.25 billion won a year ago, the company said in a statement. Robust sales of the Rexton Sports sport-utility vehicle (SUV) and the Tivoli SUV helped improve the bottom line, it said.

    Operating losses stood at 3.48 billion won in the final quarter from 2.57 billion won a year ago. Sales rose 17 percent to 1.053 trillion won from 902.16 billion won during the same period.

    For 2018, net losses slightly improved to 61.84 billion won from 65.82 billion won the previous year. Operating losses remained almost unchanged at 64.18 billion won compared with 65.28 billion won.

    Lees ook:

  • Vingroup reports $25 mln revenue from vehicle, smartphone sales

    Vingroup reports $25 mln revenue from vehicle, smartphone sales

    Vietnam’s largest listed private company Vingroup has reported revenues of VND600 billion ($25.77 million) from car, electric motorbike and phone sales last year. VinFast, a Vingroup subsidiary, became the country’s first indigenous car manufacturer last October and showed off its first two car models at the Paris Motor Show in France. It has begun to accept bookings and deposits for the cars, and will start selling them next August.

    Last November it launched its first two electric scooters, but has not disclosed sales figures.

    VinSmart, the Vingroup unit that produces smart electronic devices, launched four new phones in December in a market of 95 million people currently dominated by Samsung and Apple.

    Its factory in the northern city of Hai Phong is capable of making five million phones a year in the first phase.

    The company also hopes to expand to markets outside Vietnam, and will make smart TVs and other smart products soon.

    Vingroup is a conglomerate with the country’s largest real estate operations and interests in retail, healthcare and resorts.

    The conglomerate reported profit before tax of over VND13.8 trillion ($592.6 million) last year, up 52 percent from 2017, on net revenues of VND122.57 trillion ($5.24 billion).

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Chinese New Year to drive sales for businesses

    Chinese New Year to drive sales for businesses

    Despite lacklustre consumer sentiment, businesses are gearing up for brisk sales as consumers do their Chinese New Year (CNY) shopping for the much celebrated festival next week, with many businesses citing CNY as an important sales contributing season. LG Electronics Malaysia general manager of marketing Kong Mun Keen said festive season campaigns, whether CNY or Hari Raya, contributes bigger sales for LG.

    “We often see a spike in sales whenever festive seasons are fast approaching,” he said, adding that this year, LG Electronics Malaysia has allocated a “substantial amount of budget” for its CNY campaign.

    Although only a month into 2019, he said LG Electronics is “on the right track” in terms of sales.

    By distinguishing itself with its technology and product experience, Kong said LG’s strategy has always focused on reaching out to all Malaysians, evident through its brand store openings in 2018, where it works with partners to drive new consumer touchpoints.

    “Malaysia has always been a priority market, given that LG has secured and maintained a strong position in the home appliances and home entertainment segments here. With our premium and unique positioning coupled with innovative and consumer-centric products line-up, we are confident that there will always be a demand for our products here,” said Kong, adding that it is constantly ensuring that its products can integrate seamlessly into consumers’ lives.

    For big-ticket items like cars, Edaran Tan Chong Motor Sdn Bhd (ETCM) executive director Tan Keng Meng expects its CNY sales to be about the same as last year’s or better.

    “It’s always CNY and Raya. These are the two peak seasons,” said Tan.

    In conjunction with CNY, ETCM added the new imperial red colour to the popular Nissan Serena 2.0L S-Hybrid Premium Highway Star, featuring a two-tone theme. Additionally, ETCM continues the introduction of Nissan X-Trail X-Tremer in passion red and two additional colour options.

    Meanwhile, a Uniqlo Malaysia representative said festive periods are traditionally good opportunities for retailers to grow their sales, adding that it continues to experience healthy sales growth this year.

    “We believe this is due to our commitment to produce high-quality products at accessible prices while keeping with today’s fashion trends. Customer service is also a top priority to ensure that our customers have the best shopping experience possible.”

    As with previous years, it believe that customers are always looking for something new and fresh to start their new year.

    “We are bringing many new items to the store for customers to choose. We will also be launching the Uniqlo U collection on Feb 1 for last minute shoppers to get their new year clothes.”

    The representative said customers are consistently looking for items that are value for money and Uniqlo is well positioned to meet their needs.

    Tohtonku Sdn Bhd head of marketing Vicky Lim said CNY is one of the peak seasons for sales with its back-to-back promotions in December and January.

    But instead of spending on CNY promotional campaigns, Lim said, the company, which markets personal care and household products with brands like Follow Me, Nutox and Nanowhite, still focuses on brand communications.

    A representative for The Body Shop said although CNY is not its largest festive season sales contributor, it dresses up its stores with decorations that symbolise the blooming of spring and the festive mood of CNY.

    “We offer prosperous gifts such as hampers. This year we picked British rose as the main product that appeals to a wider target audience and with its colour of pink, it’s in line with the colour scheme that represents CNY.

    “Our staff are also dressed in mandarin Oriental tops and we play both instrumental and vocal music that reminds you of CNY.”

  • GM Korea’s union has plan to get workers paid

    GM Korea’s union has plan to get workers paid

    GM Korea’s union is planning to request further government support for employees who took unpaid leave after the shutdown of the Gunsan manufacturing plant last year. The decision, outlined in a follow-up document detailing a GM Korea union meeting held on Jan. 22, could go back on the original arrangement with the company to share the cost burden of supporting employees who went on unpaid leave.

    Since GM Korea’s Gunsan plant closed last year, the government provided support for six months, until November, to hundreds of workers who took unpaid leave. The company and its union decided to each cover half of the support payments, or 1.125 million won ($1,000) for every worker, for 24 months after the end of the government support. According to the document, the union will work towards gaining further government support by recategorizing unpaid-leave workers as paid-leave workers.

    According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, companies can apply for government support for workers on paid leave to partially cover their payment. If the company pays 70 percent of the pay for employees on paid leave, the government can provide around two-thirds the amount for up to 180 accounting days.

    The document said the change would require agreement from the company and approval from the Labor Ministry. GM Korea said it has paid what it owes to workers on unpaid leave. It declined to comment on the union’s plans. Korea Development Bank completed last month injection of $750 million into the struggling company.

  • Ssangyong teases new Korando

    Ssangyong teases new Korando

    SsangYong Motor said Monday it will release a brand new sport utility vehicle in March that will replace its current Korando C SUV. The fresh model, which has been developed under the project name C300, will simply be called the “Korando,” according to the carmaker. Korando is one of SsangYong’s oldest lineups, alongside Tivoli and Rexton. The company decided to retain the name, hoping that would boost sales.

    It is the first entirely new car in the Korando lineup in eight years, since the company rolled out the midsize SUV Korando C – since then, it has just been revamped versions of existing models. Cars sold under the Korando label include the Korando Sports, Korando Turismo and Korando C, which will be discontinued when the new Korando launches.

    SsangYong also unveiled three teaser images of the car on Monday. The carmaker said it used a low and wide design for the car’s body, following a global trend. The front of the vehicle resembles SsangYong’s popular compact SUV Tivoli.

    The automaker has added various driver assistant features to the car. With the SUV market expanding, SsangYong hopes to grow its market share in the local car market with the anticipated release.

    A spokesperson from SsangYong said the new car will be the “most fascinating and high-tech Korando-branded car in history.”

  • Kia Motors begins sales of 2020 edition of Sorento SUV

    Kia Motors begins sales of 2020 edition of Sorento SUV

    Kia Motors announced Monday it has begun rolling out the 2020 model of its Sorento sport-utility vehicle (SUV) for sale. The updated Sorento comes with new safety features applied to all of its diesel trims and a refreshed design. The diesel version of the compact crossover SUV will have smart safety features, such as lane keep assist, lane departure warning, driver attention warning and others on all of its trims.

    As for design, the automaker said it applied a newly designed dark chrome grille on all of its models, with the highest trim model installed with 19-inch chrome alloy wheels.

    The new model also comes with a new premium trim called “master special,” which features more options, such as rear occupant alert and a head-up display.

    The SUV comes in diesel and gasoline models, with the base diesel model starting at 27.88 million won ($25,000).

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook: