2017 Seoul Motor Show focuses on future mobility

By Jhoo Dong-chan

Participating carmakers at this year’s Seoul International Motor Show, rather than emphasizing their eco-friendly technologies as they’ve been doing at previous major motor shows, came up with another motto this year _ future mobility.

During the event’s media day on Thursday, the first day of the biennial car show that continues until April 9, the eco-friendly trend continued from last year’s Busan International Motor Show. Fifty vehicles, or around 20 percent of the 243 cars showcased, were green cars, but this year’s event also emphasized future mobility technologies, including connected and self-driving cars.

For this year’s event at at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Mahindra & Mahindra Group Chairman and Managing Director Anand Mahindra also participated in Ssangyong Motor’s media conference for its new G4 Rexton SUV.

The nation’s largest carmaker Hyundai Motor showcased the Ioniq autonomous car during a media conference. During the presentation, the self-driving Ioniq sedan drove without a driver, evading road obstacles to come up to the stage.

First introduced at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Hyundai Motor suggested its three visions for future mobility _ Freedom in Mobility, Clean Mobility and Connected Mobility.

Kia Motors, Hyundai Motor’s sister brand, unveiled the Stinger sports sedan for the first time in Korea, boasting its powerful driving performance of 370 horsepower that can do 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in 4.9 seconds.

Renault Samsung, the French carmaker’s local affiliate in Korea, introduced the Clio hatchback at the media conference, aiming to attract young motorists with the vehicle model’s unique look.

GM Korea, the American carmaker’s local sales unit here, showcased the Bolt EV during the presentation. GM Korea CEO James Kim said all 400 cars available sold out within two hours after the carmaker started to receive preorders on March 17.

The nation’s major IT firms like Naver participated in the motor show for the first time to showcase their self-driving technologies.