Hyundai has shut down engine R&D center to focus only on EVs: Report

On its road to carbon neutrality, Hyundai has announced plans to sell only electric vehicles in Europe by 2035 and discontinue the combustion engine in major markets around the world by 2040. It recently disclosed there’s a second dedicated electric car platform in the works, which will join the E-GMP architecture at one point.

Not only that, but the South Korean brand has hinted development of new internal combustion engines has pretty much ended. Hyundai’s ICE efforts will be limited to making current gasoline and diesel units cleaner and more efficient to meet stricter emissions regulations such as Euro 7 arriving in the latter half of the decade. A new report from Business Korea goes as far as to say the Hyundai Motor Group as a whole has “abruptly abolished” its engine development center.

The Namyang Research Institute was allegedly overhauled earlier this month when the Powertrain Team was transformed into the Electrification Development Team, thus signaling plans to channel all R&D efforts into EVs. According to the same report, the Engine Development Center previously responsible for new gasoline and diesel units has been “completely shut down” before being converted for electric drivetrains.

At the same Namyang R&D center, a new Battery Development Center was implemented with the sole focus of finding ways to perfect battery technology for future zero-emissions applications. In early November, Hyundai (and Kia) teamed up with Factorial Energy to jointly work on solid-state battery tech. When these will finally be ready to hit the market, expect EVs to have a lot more range and charge considerably quicker. At the same time, safety issues associated with conventional lithium-ion batteries and their highly flammable liquid electrolyte will become a thing of the past.

Business Korea goes on to say Hyundai has “torn down walls among R&D departments” by unifying the Project Management and the Integrated Product Development teams in a bid to speed up the development of purely electric vehicles.

Source: Business Korea