Hyundai’s U.S. EV factory cost grows to $7.59B
Hyundai Motor North America spokesperson Michael Stewart told Automotive News the increased investment is also because of the success of Hyundai electric vehicles.
The automaker has nine EVs for sale in the U.S. across the Hyundai, Genesis and Kia brands and recently regained its position as the No. 2 seller of electric vehicles in the U.S. behind Tesla.
According to new-vehicle registration data from Experian, Hyundai Motor Group had 37,166 EV registrations through the first six months of the year. That lags Tesla’s 329,608 registrations but is more than the 34,259 registrations from General Motors across its Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac brands.
Hyundai EVs were dealt a setback this year with the enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act, which eliminated the eligibility of imported EVs for a $7,500 federal EV tax credit.
Stewart said to increase sales activity without the federal incentive, Hyundai has been leaning on a provision in the law that allows the captive to pass the tax credit down to consumers who choose to lease the vehicles.
That strategy is helping boost sales activity. Leasing penetration is up from 3 percent last year to more than 30 percent, according to the automaker.
