Hyundai to Stop Production of Diesel Sedans
11 August, 2018
Hyundai will stop production of diesel versions of four models amid sluggish sales, the carmaker said on Thursday.
"We decided to eclipse diesel sedans as they are quickly replaced with eco-friendly cars amid low demand," a Hyundai spokesman said. "In the long term, diesel versions are available for some popular SUV models only."
Under the decision, the diesel versions of the Sonata sedan, i30 hatchback, Grandeur sedan and Maxcruz SUV are no longer manufactured as of Friday, and only those remaining ones in stock will be sold. Hyundai plans to launch a new large SUV at the end of this year, so it decided to discontinue the production of the Maxcruz SUV.
Hyundai sees it is no longer profitable to produce diesel sedans. The diesel versions of the Grandeur and Sonata sedans account for just 10 percent of their sales.
Customers are increasingly turning their backs on diesel vehicles after a massive emissions-rigging scandal that rocked German carmaker Volkswagen between 2015 and 2016, followed by a spate of accidents involving BMWs catching fire recently.
Moreover, more motorists prefer electric or eco-friendly vehicles as the government mulls stiff measures to ban old diesel cars in a bid to reduce air pollution.
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