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Korean car maker Hyundai (Hyundai) has announced its re-entry into Japan. It appeared in Japan as "Hyundai" in 2001, but it did not sell well and withdrew from the Japanese market in 2010. This time, the name is "Hyundai" and EV and FCV are put together to re-enter Japan. [Image gallery] Only Japan does not know ?? If so, I definitely want to know !! Hyundai (Hyundai) EV & FCV (11 sheets) re-entering Japan Is there a chance of winning the second advance !? Mr. Soichi Shimizu Report.Sentence / Souichi Shimizu, Photo / Hyundai Mobility Japan

■ Hyundai becomes "Hyundai" and re-enters Japan based on the lessons learned from the first withdrawal

Hyundai's trump card for re-entering Japan Ionic 5

Korean car maker Hyundai (Hyundai) has announced its re-entry into Japan. This time, it is limited to EVs and FCVs, and it is said that it will specialize in online sales. We see this as a major threat to domestic manufacturers! Hyundai Motor once challenged the Japanese market. In 2001, under the propaganda that "Hyundai (the name in Japan at that time) may not be known only in Japan", "Hyundai Sonata" and "Hyundai XG" were sold, but they struggled hard, 2010. Withdrew from the Japanese market in 2014. Only about 15,000 Hyundai cars were sold in Japan in 10 years. Immediately before entering Japan, I participated in a test drive event held on Jeju Island and rode three modern cars. At that time, Hyundai had already made great inroads into Europe and the United States, taking a considerable share. It is said that it was the 198th country in the world to enter Japan. However, at that time, compared to Japanese cars, the sense of interior and exterior and the mechanism were great, and I felt that "it must be at least 20 to 30% cheaper than Japanese cars to sell in Japan." However, the actual pricing in Japan was almost the same as that of Japanese cars. Moreover, because it was a one-price sale without discounts, it was actually higher than Japanese cars with large discounts. At that time, Japanese people looked down on all Korean-made products, so their brand power was negative rather than zero. It is natural that this will fail.

■ 12 years since the withdrawal from Japan …… Korean automobiles that have evolved surprisingly

Another trump card Nesso alongside Ioniq 5

To tell the truth, I'm a Korean car enthusiast. In 1995, he traveled to South Korea with his own Ferrari, took a test drive on a Korean car at that time there, and has traveled to South Korea twice since then. The situation that "Japan may be the only one who does not know Hyundai" continues, but as a Japanese, I am a person who knows Hyundai (a new modern name). I didn't ride a Korean car at the end of my trip to Korea in 2010, but I was shocked by the texture of the Hyundai Elantra (4th generation) that I rode at that time. The third-generation Elantra was also sold in Japan, but there was still a considerable difference compared to its domestic rival, the Corolla. However, the 4th generation Elantra had all improved so much that if you closed your eyes and got on it, you wouldn't notice the difference with the Corolla. At that point, I already felt that "Japanese cars are already catching up with Korean cars." Currently, the Hyundai Group sells about 7 million units worldwide, surpassing all Japanese manufacturers except Toyota. Many Japanese wouldn't want to admit it, but the evaluation and price overseas are almost the same as Japanese cars. The era of "Korean cars sell because they are cheap" is over. The situation is similar to home appliances. No, Japanese products have already been completely defeated by Korean products in home appliances .... However, even if we challenge the Japanese market head-on like last time, there is no chance of winning. No matter how many K-pop hits, middle-aged and older people have a strong anti-Korean sentiment, and Japanese people have no reason to choose a Korean car. However, this time, the sales strategy is novel. First, team up with DENA's car-sharing service "Enika" to have them test drive before purchasing, and if you like it, purchase it. Even after purchase, you can rent it to car sharing through Enika when you are not using it. Isn't this very attractive? Originally, EVs are similar to home appliances and smartphones, so you shouldn't have to be too particular about the brand.