Hyundai Australia insists the Korean maker will bring its updated prime mover here but can't say when
By Rob McKay | May 13, 2013
Hyundai Australia says the Xcient heavy-duty cabover will enter the Australian market, though the timing is unclear.
The assurance comes as market speculation surfaces that Hyundai’s dealerships, which already handle the HD45, HD65 and HD75 light trucks, have started working out how
to support the bigger offering.
However, Hyundai’s local head of heavy commercial vehicles, Anthony Hulme, says that while there have always been plans to bring Hyundai heavy trucks here, a date is yet to be fixed.
“It will happen,” Hulme says.
“When we started the [Australian truck] business back in 2010, we had a five-year business plan and, obviously, heavy-duty trucks was to fall into that plan.”
Much would depend on when headquarters in Seoul sought to build right-hand drive models, he adds.
The Xcient was unveiled at the 2013 Seoul Motor Show in late March and is the next iteration of the Trago, which debuted in 2006.
“The Xcient is the result of Hyundai Motor’s relentless pursuit of excellence and technology innovation,” Hyundai Motor Vice-Chairman Hanyoung Choi said at the time of the launch.
“We believe that this new vehicle will help us achieve our goal of becoming a major player in the commercial vehicle market.”
The Xcient, which took three years and Won200 billion [$180 million]
of investment to develop, “offers a full lineup including cargo, tractor and dump”, the company says.
It will go on sale outside Australia
in the second half of this year with a target of 60,000 global sales by 2017.
Hyundai is set to hold events for the new vehicle in overseas markets including Peru and Russia.
The Xcient wil come with two diesel engines: a 10- litre H-engine, with maximum output of 420ps, maximum torque of 200kg/m; and a Powertech engine, with maximum output of 520ps, maximum torque of 255kg/m.
The company says the cabin 330mm higher at 1,895mm.
The width of the bed has also been increased to 800mm from 650mm, while there is 1,046 litres of storage room.
It is understood that Hyundai in Korea bought three Volvo prime movers several years ago and observers have mentioned a passing resemblance between the vehicles.
