It has also launched its supermini and likely major volume seller, the Getz, which goes on sale in October, and then, a couple of weeks ago, Hyundai UK announced the first five-year/unlimited mileage warranty across the entire range – a first in this country.
So naturally, when Fleet News met UK managing director David Walker, he was full of confidence and ambition for the future. He believes the five-year warranty in particular will signal a leap forward for the company.
'I think it's an opportunity to trigger some growth, because we have stayed at about 30,000 cars a year for the last three years, and we need to kick-start that growth. We have a goal of getting to the next milestone of 40,000 cars a year over the next three years,' he said.
If Hyundai's American experience is taken as a benchmark, then Walker has every right to be optimistic. Hyundai has had a 10-year warranty running for three years in the US and sales have grown considerably.
Walker added: 'Fleet will contribute to that growth and over that period we are aiming to have about 15-20% of our business in fleet, so we would move to 7,000-8,000 fleet units a year. That's a sensible ambition to have.
'We are clearly looking to increase our presence in fleet. One of the biggest obstacles we come up against is the question of residual values and we believe that the new warranty package should help it out.
'Fleet business can be very seductive, particularly rental business, as it is easy to get in at the front end. It is easy to sell cars, but you have to cope with what happens at the back end and so we are approaching it in a measured way.'
Hyundai pulled out of rental business early last year because of trouble guaranteeing residual values.
Walker believes Hyundai cars are undervalued by the used car price experts, and is hopeful that being able to sell a car after three years that still has two years left to run on its warranty will help to boost resale values. In the case of taxis and hire cars though, the warranty has a not unreasonable 100,000-mile limit, rather than unlimited as on all other sales.
And with residuals more stable this year, the firm is starting once again to do deals with rental companies. Walker said: 'We came out of daily rental deliberately, but we are back in again. We have done deals with Thrifty, Hertz and some others.
'So we have started to go back in again but we are not going back in with one partner with a lot of cars. We are doing deals of about 200 to 250 cars in order to spread the risk and I think that's a more sensible strategy.
'Residuals have levelled out and we just have to proceed cautiously. The other issue is, beyond the rental, we also need to look at some of the other segments of the fleet sector, such as taxis, Motability and local authority fleets.'
The company has been carrying out work with taxi fleets where diesel Elantras and Trajets are proving popular. Walker said Hyundai had even gone as far as ordering more white vehicles, which are requested by airport taxi fleets.
But he is keen that Hyundai starts to forge more meaningful relationships in the mainstream fleet sector, although he feels the more likely market for Hyundai vehicles is small business fleets.
To do this, as well as the corporate test fleet launched in April this year, he admitted that Hyundai had to sharpen up its act with leasing companies and at dealerships.
He said: 'We're starting to develop better relationships with the leasing companies to make sure they have the information, the best rates, essential maintenance costs, which are the sort of things we have not been good at maintaining in the past. And that's all about preparing the ground so you have a presence in the market.
'For small businesses, we are becoming a more attractive proposition because we have the reassurance of the five-year/unlimited mileage warranty. Like any business tool, you look for reliability and durability and we hope we will become a more attractive proposition to those companies looking to make a very sensible purchase and spend their money well.
'A lot of small business deals are done through dealers and people who own their own businesses run two or three cars and behave like retail customers. They go into dealerships and drive the cars and we have made some progress in that area.
'Our franchise, like all the others, is such that if you go to a dealer with a local business proposition, some of them are better at it than others. The dealers that are switched on to prospecting the local business community have done pretty well out of it. We have to stoke that up again with a better product range and more support.
'The warranty does give the dealers a distinct competitive advantage – a real opportunity to say 'Well, why wouldn't you buy this car?' We have something distinctive and quite unique in the market.'
Walker believes that Hyundai's future prospects in the fleet market are getting stronger because it now offers a complete range, from the Getz supermini, available in October, through the Coupe and Santa Fe SUV to the Trajet MPV.
And UK drivers should start to see the benefits of the company's Frankfurt-based design studio, which will have more of a say in the future shape of Hyundai cars. Its influences are starting to be seen with the restyled Coupe and the Getz.
Walker said: 'The Koreans know they have got to succeed in Europe to be a global player. Their ambition is to be a top five player by 2010. They are not short of ambition and they know to do that they have to succeed in what is arguably the most mature market in the world. They are taking that very seriously.
'There is no doubt a much better understanding of European market, because the Koreans are prepared to listen, so they are making a concerted effort to understand and adapt.
'But we are the only market in Europe with a five-year warranty.
'To the Koreans, the UK is a trophy market, because the relationship is very strong and harmonious. The fact they really want to succeed in the UK is one of the drivers for being given this opportunity.
'The Koreans are also starting to understand the fleet market a little better. It has been an education process because they tend to associate fleet with daily rental. Fleet equals rental and what we're saying to them is there are lots of other sectors to it. It is a learning process.'
After the summer it has had, South Korea is on a roll. The World Cup gave the world the chance to see that the country is not just a cheap imitation of Japan but a rising star in its own right – a visit to the technological powerhouse that is the centre of Seoul confirms that.
And Hyundai UK now believes it is in a position to capitalise on all the good publicity its home country has had. It has the range, first mover advantage with its warranty and a more solid and balanced fleet policy.
'We want to see more and more people crossing the threshold of our dealerships in the next few weeks,' said Walker. 'It's time to let the product do the talking.'
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