In the diverse industry of automotive, the Americans are generally linked with size and power, anything European gets an assumed sense of higher refinement and the Japanese are legendary when it comes to reliability. The third region mention, Japan, used to be the only name coming from Asia where cars are concerned. Of course, there have been more manufacturers from several more Asian countries over the years but only one of the rising nations pose a threat not only to Japan’s Asian and global domination but also to all the major players in automotive markets all over the world as well; the Koreans.
Toyota and Honda have already cemented their place as possibly the most trusty car brands in the world today. What those two names are to Japan, Kia and Hyundai are to Korea. Korean cars only began to penetrate international markets realistically in the early 90s. Even back then, most of them were just deemed as cheap cars, in terms of both price and what the car actually is. Compared to its Japanese rivals of which costs do not defer too much during those days, it was quite true as the Korean cars always seemed to lack the kind of quality and refinement an established company could provide.
However, these manufacturers are moving at such an incredible pace that they’re toppling most western marquees in many countries in terms of sales and are outselling many American brands on American soil of late, gaining money while the once great GM falls into bankruptcy. These car makers are advancing at such an incredible rate that they are turning their very well design concepts into production cars much faster than most manufacturers do. While some would argue that the wait is necessary for the manufacturer to fine tune every part and revise the designs, recent Korean examples like the Kia Soul and the Hyundai Genesis Coupe simply show that the cars they build are still top notch.
Apart from Kia and Hyundai, Daewoo is another significant Korean car manufacturer. They have advanced to an extent where almost all of their new models in their current line up are sold under more established and recognized brands, especially Chevrolet, among other GM brands like Opel, Suzuki and Vauxhall under the company’s rebadging strategies to win over different markets worldwide. While GM may not be in a position to shout about of late, the fact that Daewoo and the cars they make figured so much in their marketing plans internationally only show the prowess of the Korean manufacturer and the cars it engineers. Ssangyong is another Korean manufacturer not quite as big as the rest but worth mentioning nonetheless as most of the cars they make borrow Mercedes Benz engines and gearbox technologies used in Porsches. While they are not in a financially happy period either, the underpinnings of their cars and the ambition Ssangyong show are rather worth a nod for a not so widely recognized brand name.
Generally, big or small, the fact is that Korean manufacturers are making their presence felt if not so already. At the incredible speed they are improving themselves, it will be no wonder to see them directly head to head with the more establish likes of Honda and Toyota for example as judging from automotive rankings around the globe today, there is a Korean name on almost every top 10 list already.