Distinguishing Itself
The Hyundai Motor Group’s plant in Russia, located in Saint Petersburg, is emerging rapidly as a key global manufacturing base of the automaker. The factory’s capacity ratio is at around 115 percent, second to none among the group’s manufacturing facilities worldwide, and the manufacturing and sales volume of the Solaris produced there has exceeded 400,000 recently.
What is even more encouraging is that the Solaris, which has topped Russia’s imported car list for a long while, is about to become the number one bestseller in the entire auto market of the country.
Lada’s Granta sedan, the hottest-selling model in Russia, recorded a cumulative sales volume of 45,570 in the first four months of this year, showing a 14 percent decline from a year earlier. Meanwhile, Hyundai sold 35,218 units of the Solaris during the same period to retain second place and limit the decline to just 2 percent.
The Solaris has been praised for its battery resistant to low temperature, four-liter washer tank allowing for the snowy climate, and sudden braking alarm considering local driving conditions. The compact car recorded its highest sales volume in the imported car market of Russia for three consecutive years until last year.
The Russian plant manufactures the Rio, a compact car of Kia Motors, too. This model is the runner-up in the imported vehicle market, and its manufacturing and sales volume recently topped 250,000.