Category: Rumors

A federal judge upheld a $350,000 punitive damages award against a Michigan dealership in a spot delivery and wrongful repossession case.

• Hyundai is developing an extended-range EV
• The EREV setup will find its way into a lot of segment
• An EREV pickup truck and at least two EREV SUVs are planned

We’ve been hearing rumblings for a while now that Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group is getting into the extended-range electric vehicle, or EREV game. By making what’s essentially an EV with a gas engine as a backup generator, the technology could end range anxiety for good. It’s likely to be applied to new Hyundai pickup trucks (including those shared with Kia), but now a report from Korea Economic Daily indicates the Hyundai Santa Fe and Genesis GV70 could go this route as well. 

If you need a refresher, an EREV is slightly different than a typical plug-in hybrid or EV. In an EREV, the propulsion comes solely from the vehicle’s electric motors and battery, while the gas engine is merely on board to charge the batteries; it does not actually power the wheels.

We’ve seen it on cars like the BMW i3 as well as a tweaked version of the concept in the Chevrolet Volt, but it’s also a popular powertrain in places like China. In that country, E-REVs made by Li Auto, Aito, Changan and hold court in China’s New Energy Vehicle sales charts. Closer to home, the upcoming Ram Ramcharger uses this setup as well. 

Details about the Hyundai’s mechanical bits are scant, but the post does allege that the project already has a code name and is headed up by Hyundai R&D’s head, Hee-Won Yang. Korea Economic Daily reports that pickup trucks using the tech will go on sale in 2028 or 2029, while the Santa Fe and Genesis GV70 will enter production in “two to three years.”  

Whether these would be all-new models or updates to current ones seems unclear. The Genesis GV70, which comes in gas and electric form, has been around a few years now, so they’re probably looking to some replacement. The Santa Fe (which uses a different platform than the GV70) is brand new as of last year, so we’re wondering if an EREV setup would be an option or a substantial enough change to make it a completely new model.

The EREV trucks would really put Hyundai Motor Group into that game in America, where right now it only has the compact Santa Cruz—and nothing on Kia’s end unless the new Tasman truck is confirmed to head our way. Korea Economic Daily claims Hyundai’s EREV trucks could compete with the “Ford F-Series, Chevrolet’s Silverado and the Ram pickup, as well as Tesla Inc.’s Cybertruck,” but if we had to put money on it, we’d guess these trucks will end up on the more compact side of things. 

Either way, this is interesting news for Hyundai. The latest gas-powered Santa Fe reviews well but lost its PHEV variant with the new model changeover. Perhaps it wasn’t a big loss since the PHEV’s dinky electric motor and small range made full EV engine-off driving a chore. In theory, an EREV would make electrified driving easier and smoother.

Would an EREV be something you’re interested in? Sound off in the comments. 

Contact the author: kevin.williams@insideevs.com 

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• Hyundai reportedly tore down a Tesla Cybertruck at one of its research facilities in South Korea.
• The manufacturer wants to make a full-size electric pickup, which will probably be a range extender, according to one report from Korea.
• Kia could make its own version of the extended-range truck.

Hyundai has completely shifted its image in the last decade and a half, and it now makes cars that people want to buy not only because they are affordable. One area where it hasn’t had much success, though, is the U.S. pickup segment, where its only representative is the Hyundai Santa Cruz (pictured). It’s a pretty good truck, but it isn’t a hot seller, so the manufacturer will reportedly try again, hoping to hit higher sales numbers, this time with a larger and more powerful electric truck.

The unconfirmed news comes from Korea’s Naver News, which announced that Hyundai had torn down a Tesla Cybertruck, presumably to help it speed up the development process of its own entrant. The teardown started on July 13 at the Hyundai Namyang Research Center and was completed by July 28.

We don’t know Hyundai’s official plans since the manufacturer hasn’t made any announcements, but the source says its electric truck might be a range extender or at least come with an available extended-range powertrain. The manufacturer wants to sell 50,000 range extenders starting in 2029, and the new pickup might be the main driver to hit that target.

Kia has set the same EREV sales target, which suggests that it could make its own version of the pickup. Even though the Korean media doesn’t mention battery-electric versions of these trucks, they would probably be available since some buyers may not need the range extender. Kia announced in 2022 that it planned to produce two electric pickups but didn’t provide a time frame for their launch.

One of the new truck’s targets is to provide a range of over 250 miles (400 km) while towing 8,800 pounds (4,000 kg). We presume this goal is for the extended-range model because, with current battery technology, a pure BEV truck would need a huge battery pack to meet this.

These pickups are being designed to win over American truck buyers. We will likely see some features that seem heavily inspired by other successful trucks. Hyundai is looking at the three best-selling pickups on the market, trying to understand what makes them successful and distilling their essence into its own, hopefully, market-breaking model.

The Tesla Cybertruck was chosen for the teardown because it’s very popular right now, but it’s likely that other trucks were also dissected, which may have flown under the media’s radar.

Many truck owners in the U.S. like to tow, and if all the electric pickup towing tests have taught us anything, it’s that pulling something heavy saps range at an alarming rate. There’s nothing wrong with the pulling power offered by electric trucks, but a diesel makes a lot more sense when it comes to longer-distance towing jobs.

But an extended-range truck might be even better for towing. You get the benefit of the electric motors’ torque and pulling power, but instead of having to search for a charging station, stop, and wait for the truck to charge, you can simply pull into a gas station, fill up, and continue your journey. Another advantage is that while an EREV doesn’t have anywhere near the battery capacity of a full EV, it still offers plenty of emissions-free miles on a full charge.

Ram is working on the 1500 Ramcharger, which is currently the only extended-range truck that we know is coming. Its 92 kWh battery provides 141 miles of electric driving before the V6 generator starts up to replenish the pack.

The Ramcharger will have a combined range of 690 miles with a fully charged battery and a full tank. If Hyundai and Kia are working on range extender pickups aimed at the American market, they will surely keep a close eye on any Ramcharger news (since it’s not out yet, they can’t benchmark or tear one down).

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