Finished car makers will roll out a variety of eco-friendly new models in Korea in the second half of the year. In the domestic market, electric vehicles and hybrids accounted for half of new cars sold in the first half, and the share of eco-friendly cars has been growing quickly.
According to the finished car industry on the 11th, Hyundai Motor will launch the GV90, a large flagship electric sport-utility vehicle (SUV) of the premium Genesis brand, and the GV80 hybrid, a midsize SUV, in the second half. Hybrid models will also be included for the fully redesigned new Avante and Tucson, and the Santa Fe, which is getting a facelift.
Set for release in September, the GV90 is the first production model from Hyundai Motor's Ulsan EV-dedicated plant, completed with an investment of about 2 trillion won. It will be the first to use Hyundai Motor's next-generation EV platform, "eM," and is expected to have a driving range of up to 800 kilometers on a single charge.
In the same month, Genesis' first hybrid model, the GV80 hybrid, will also debut. At the end of the year, the hybrid model of the midsize sedan G80 is also scheduled to be unveiled.
Unveiled at the "2026 Busan Mobility Show" on the on the last month, the eighth-generation The All New Avante is a compact sedan and will launch next month with a 2.0 gasoline model and a 1.6 hybrid model. The compact SUV Tucson, coming as a full redesign for the first time in six years, and the facelifted version of the midsize SUV Santa Fe will both be sold with two powertrains: gasoline and hybrid.
According to Kaizuyu Data Research Institute, new car registrations in the first half of this year totaled 853,969, up 1.3% from a year earlier. Of that, eco-friendly cars accounted for 49.9%. By contrast, Hyundai Motor's sales during the same period came to 316,713 units, down 10.8% from a year earlier.
With hybrids included among core volume models in the second half and additional electric and hybrid cars added to the Genesis brand, there is an outlook that Hyundai Motor's sales performance will improve.
Imported car makers also plan to launch several eco-friendly new models in the second half.
Tesla will introduce the Model Y Standard, an entry version of the midsize SUV Model Y. The car reduces convenience features from the existing Model Y in exchange for a lower price. It first launched in the U.S. market last year, coming in about $5,000 (about 7.6 million won) cheaper than the premium Model Y.
Volvo is set to launch the ES90, a midsize electric sedan, at the end of this month. Mercedes-Benz will also debut in the Korean market the GLC with EQ Technology unveiled last year. Alongside this, it will release an electric version of the compact sedan CLA equipped with "Alpamayo," a next-generation Autonomous Driving platform developed by Nvidia.
Following last month's launch of the iX3, an electric midsize SUV, BMW will begin selling a facelifted version of the large 7 Series in the second half. The i7, the electric variant of the 7 Series, will also get a facelift.