Hyundai Motor moved to defend its home turf by unveiling the all-new Avante, a full redesign of the compact sedan Avante, at the 2026 Busan Mobility Show. China's BYD, which has been stepping up its offensive in the domestic market, unveiled a new plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) priced at 37.5 million won.
On the 26th, Hyundai Motor unveiled the all-new Avante, a compact sedan, to the media a day before the opening of the Busan Mobility Show. It is the eighth-generation model, coming six years after the seventh generation launched in 2020.
The body grew to the point that the width difference with the midsize sedan Sonata The Edge is just 5 mm. The design has been improved, with a strong emphasis on the fender's volume, and it also comes with the next-generation infotainment system "Pleaos Connect" and the generative artificial intelligence (AI) agent "Glaeo AI." Park Min-woo, president of Hyundai Motor Group's Advanced Vehicle Platform (AVP), said, "Pleaos Connect is the key to change that completely and newly expands the Avante experience."
Hyundai Motor expects the new Avante to play the role of a "cash cow" that will turn around sluggish sales. José Muñoz, Hyundai Motor chief executive officer (CEO), said, "We will continue to grow in the domestic market as well as globally and set new sales records," adding, "I am confident the new Avante will also receive a very positive response." Hyundai Motor will launch the all-new Avante in the third quarter of this year.
Hyundai Motor urgently needs a rebound in domestic sales. Hyundai Motor's sales from the start of the year through last month were 258,481 units, down 11.7% from the same period a year earlier. April sales were 54,051 units, down 19.9% from a year ago. During the same period, Kia sold 55,045 units, surpassing Hyundai Motor for the first time since being acquired into Hyundai Motor Group.
The key is the price of the new Avante. The current Avante sells for 20.34 million won to 31.84 million won, and there is an outlook that the new model could be marked up by several million won. Asked by reporters about price competitiveness, Muñoz did not give a clear answer, saying, "We are focusing not only on price but on providing an excellent experience for customers."
BYD plans to accelerate its push into the domestic market with value for money. On the day, BYD unveiled for the first time in Korea the Sea Lion 6 DM-i (dual mode intelligent), a PHEV midsize sport-utility vehicle (SUV), pricing it at 37.5 million won. That is lower than the 40 million won range the industry expected. BYD's sales from January to May this year rose 559% from a year earlier, and its market share expanded from 0.97% to 4.81%.
Liu Xueliang, BYD Group vice president and head of the BYD Asia-Pacific Automobile Business Division, said, "There are now more than 15,000 BYD eco-friendly cars running on roads across Korea," adding, "We plan to further expand service centers and sales networks in Korea more aggressively."
Separately, Kia unveiled new lineups of its purpose-built vehicle (PBV) PV5. They include the PV5 Passenger, suited for multi-seat transport such as rental cars and shuttle buses; the PV5 Prime, which enhances premium features with independent seats; and the PV5 Cargo High Roof, which raises the interior ceiling to target parcel delivery. Kia President Song Ho-sung said, "We will expand beyond the boundaries of the commercial vehicle market into a platform, not just a vehicle."
BMW unveiled the 7 Series Nero Lusso Edition, limited to 135 units worldwide.
This Busan Mobility Show also offers various hands-on experiences. Genesis exhibited the GV60 Magma, the brand's first high-performance model, and set up a space to experience the sound system applied to it. A sim racing booth was also created to run laps on a track with the GMR-001 hypercar that competes in motorsports. Hyundai Motor set up a booth to try Pleaos Connect.
In addition, Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC) organized a booth to experience the importance of seat belts through its traffic safety pavilion. It installed machines that can simulate rolling the vehicle body or sudden braking so that participants could experience the importance of seat belts in accident situations.
However, some on site noted that the Busan Mobility Show that day was overall too small to be called an international mobility event. In its heyday, the Busan Mobility Show used both Exhibition Halls 1 and 2 at the Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO), but since 2024 it has been shrunk to use only Hall 1 and has yet to recover its previous scale.
This year, 141 corporations from 12 countries participated, but there were only nine finished car manufacturers, and not many new cars were unveiled on site. At the Seoul Mobility Show held last year, Hyundai Motor, Kia, BYD and BMW showcased new models.