Hyundai will soon reveal a dramatic new look for its future Ioniq line-up.
It has confirmed that it is working on two new concept cars, named Earth and Venus, and has published an image of the duo – although it has yet to confirm which car is which.
One image shows the front-quarter flank of a silver-painted, cab-forward car. It has chunky wheel-arch cladding so may hint at the brand’s next wave of SUVs. It also reveals a new Lamborghini-style lighting graphic, with straight, intersecting lines, suggesting a move away from the ‘pixel’ signature that was introduced with the Ioniq 5 and reprised for the Ioniq 6 and Ioniq 9.
The other image previews the rear of a more rakish vehicle, expected to be the Venus, given it is painted gold. It appears to be a fastback coupé, but this too has yet to be confirmed, and the image cuts off just before the car’s main roof section can be seen. This car also does away with the pixel lighting graphic.
Key cues on both cars include an emphasis on triangular forms, as well as on aerodynamics: the silver car appears to have a particularly low-set scuttle, while the gold car has a prominent lip spoiler.
A preview video published by the Hyundai Group has Chinese text at the very end, suggesting that the cars could make an appearance at the upcoming Beijing motor show (starting on 24 April), though the company has yet to confirm this. Milan Design Week, which could also host the concepts' unveiling, takes place the same week.
Hyundai Europe CEO Xavier Martinet recently told Autocar that the brand is working to make the cars in its line-up look more closely related, targeting a more cohesive line-up.
"Maybe in the past, there was not this systematic sense of family between our vehicles," he said. "It's something we're working on, but we will never do the 'photocopier machine' and go the other way around. We've seen a few brands who went maybe too far in this direction."
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