Hyundai/Kia's Prius rival to arrive by 2017
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/hybrids/" rel="tag">Hybrid</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/tech/" rel="tag">Technology</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/hatchbacks/" rel="tag">Hatchback</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/" rel="tag">Hyundai</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/" rel="tag">Kia</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/south-korea/" rel="tag">South Korea</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/hyundai-prius-figher-hybrid-spy-shots/"><img alt="Hyundai Prius-fighter spy shots" data-credit="Glenn Paulina / KGP Photograhpy" data-credit-link-back="undefined" data-mep="536966" src="http://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/1213x806+31+46/resize/628x417!/format/jpg/quality/85/http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/41299670a36dcf5c32aebd133 3e2a9f/201014368/hyundai-prius-fighter-hybrid-00-1.jpg" /></a><br />
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The <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/toyota/prius/">Toyota Prius</a> is the undisputed king of the hybrid market, but <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/">Hyundai</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/">Kia</a> are hoping to challenge its reign in the coming years with their own dedicated model. However, in all likelihood this is the same technology being shared between them. "We will take the lead in the future by raising the competitiveness of our environment-friendly cars like hybrid-only cars, plug-in hybrid cars and fuel cell hydrogen cars," <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/10/30/uk-hyundai-motor-sedan-idUKKBN0IJ04L20141030">Hy undai Motor CEO Kim Choong-ho said</a> to <em>Reuters</em>, during the launch of another vehicle in South Korea.<br />
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While Kim didn't say when the model would be ready, <em>Autocar </em>in Europe spoke to people at Kia, who <a href="http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/kia-plans-new-toyota-prius-rival">said that the company's own hybrid was two years away and codenamed the DE</a>. The initial vehicle is reportedly a five-door hatchback that's about 169-inches long, with more conventional styling than the Prius. Its powertrain is reportedly based around a 1.6-liter engine with electric assist. A plug-in version might follow later, and other bodystyles on the platform are possible. A <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/08/20/hyundai-prius-fighter-hybrid-preview/">recently spotted test mule might show the current state of development on the project</a> (pictured above).<br />
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According to <em>Reuters</em>, the decision for the new vehicle comes in order to meet tighter emissions in some markets. However, it seems like a challenging move for the US market. Hyundai already sells its <a href="http://green.autoblog.com/tag/hyundai+tucson+fuel+cell/">Tucson fuel cell</a> in limited quantities and the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/hyundai/sonata+hybrid/">Sonata hybrid</a>, and Kia has the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/optima+hybrid/">Optima hybrid</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/kia+soul+ev/">Soul EV</a>. Industry analysts are also predicting that <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/10/24/aging-prius-dropping-gas-prices-putting-hurt-on-hybrid-ev-sale/">hybrids might have a hard time versus internal combustion engines in the coming years</a>. In addition, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/toyota/">Toyota</a> is rumored to get fuel economy close to <a href="http://green.autoblog.com/2014/09/23/toyota-prius-60-mpg-eco-version-mooted/">60 miles per gallon for some versions</a> of the next Prius. All of these factors make selling the models here a potentially difficult undertaking.<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/10/31/hyundai-kias-prius-rival-arrive-by-2017/">Hyundai/Kia's Prius rival to arrive by 2017</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Fri, 31 Oct 2014 13:29:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/10/31/hyundai-kias-prius-rival-arrive-by-2017/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20986874/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/10/31/hyundai-kias-prius-rival-arrive-by-2017/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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