Nearly a year after signing a collaboration agreement, Hyundai and General Motors are ready to start building co-developed vehicles together. They've announced five new vehicles to start - and of those only one will be for the North American market. The other four will be produced for the Central and South American markets. Those include a compact SUV, car and pick-up, as well as a mid-size pick-up, all with the flexibility to use either internal combustion or hybrid systems. The fifth vehicle will be an electric commercial van for North America.
GM will lead the development of the mid-size truck platform, while Hyundai will lead on the compact vehicle and electric van. While the two companies will share common platforms - they'll develop brand specific design both inside and out. Currently, design and engineering work is underway on the new vehicles for the Central and South American markets, which will launch in 2028. The electric commercial van will be manufactured in the U.S. as early as 2028. The automakers say once production is fully scaled, they expect sales of the co-developed vehicles to be more than 800,000 a year.
“Hyundai’s strategic collaboration with GM will help us continue to deliver value and choice to our customers across multiple vehicle segments and markets,” said José Muñoz, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company. “Our combined scale in North and South America helps us to more efficiently provide our customers more of what they want – beautifully designed, high-quality, safety focused vehicles with technology they appreciate.”
Shilpan Amin, GM senior VP and global chief procurement and supply chain officer, said the vehicles announced were targeted at the largest segments in the Central and South American markets, as well as the commercial segment in North America.
“By partnering together, GM and Hyundai will bring more choice to our customers faster, and at lower cost,” Amin said. “These first co-developed vehicles clearly demonstrate how GM and Hyundai will leverage our complementary strengths and combined scale.”
Along with platform collaboration, the automaker say they also plan to jointly source materials, transport, and logistics in both North and South America. Other joint operations could potentially include raw materials, components, and complex systems.
The automakers say they are also exploring collaboration on low-carbon emissions steel as part of their commitment to sustainable manufacturing.
The recent announcement follows the signing of a framework agreement in September 2024. The companies says they continue to assess additional joint vehicle development programs for global markets, as well as collaboration opportunities across propulsion systems, including internal combustion engines, hybrid, battery electric, and hydrogen fuel cell technologies.