I'm impressed with the risks Hyundai has been taking with their design language, especially on the EVs. This car is striking. Love it or hate it, boring it's not.
(1) https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a38674592/sony-vision-s-02...
(1) The front end of the current Kia Carnival looks like a last-model Jeep Grand Cherokee.
(2) Last generation Kia Forte sedan was a essentially a last-gen Honda Civic.
(3) Current generation Kia Rio has the rear end of the Mk VI Golf.
(4) Current generation Kia Sorento has a rear-end similar to the Ford Mach E (specifically the tail lights).
None of these examples are enough to say Hyundai Motor Company is lifting their designs from other manufacturers, but the fact that there is a consistent pattern of design overlap is telling.
I certainly agree with the sentiment that it is an improvement though. And that modern high-volume passengers cars (with some exceptions, like muscle cars) have in the past been so ugly.
With this, I love a lot of the design choices in isolation - but as a whole package, I’m not quite sure. I’d need to walk around one.
Interior side mirror screens are an interesting UX choice.
Nitpick. When wasn’t this true?
Sure, in the sense that ripping off the Porsche Cayenne is risky at being sued for IP theft; it's sad but as it turns out the EV automotive design is about as stale as ICE is. That Dolorean Prototype Hyundai have been playing with was very reminiscent and likely borrowing off the polarizing hype of the Cybertruck--and since both are prototypes they don't need to do much other than the one off for PR reasons.
I disagree, Hyundai is doing what the Japanese started to do in the late 60's, that is apply their Industry know-how to European and American counterparts auto design, because quite frankly if you buy a Hyundai or a Kia it's quite likely it's for the cost and newly found reliability rather than the aesthetic aspect of the car.
This isn't to put down Hyundai, they were late enough to the automotive game that platform sharing was a thing and could pivot to EV in earnest; but the truth is that automotive design is simply a dead art and there is very little to no innovation going on, it's just rehashes of everything else.
I suspect if we fed any of these image based AIs all the cars and prototypes we've ever had we'd come up with something rather more unique than what we have now, the sad thing is because of standardization they would remain prototypes because of the costs and labour to get something like that to mass production.
Toyota is the best example of this, in that they are very visually boring cars but have optimized for QC and reliability to such an extent that you don't mind that much for what you get.
Personally speaking, I'm looking forward to the Hot-rod era re-birth when they will start to sell low cost EV swaps for old cars with minor fabrication kits: like how you can drop LSX into most chassis now. Because seeing a resto-mod 1940s Buick or Cadillac with a Model S Plaid power train seems way cooler than anything the OEMs will come out anymore.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyundai_Pony
The overall form factor looks a little hatchback? Don’t see the similarity to a Cayenne.