Cars are something that always interest gearheads like myself, yet the same can’t be said for most people. Nonetheless, many will find that the Hyundai car brand is top of mind for most Koreans, whether it’s the car they already drive or something they aspire to purchase (not necessarily a car) in the future.
The results speak for themselves. Simply glance at Korean’s auto market shares and you’ll find that Hyundai (together with its subsidiary, Kia) command a whopping 70% of the car market.
Easily one of the reasons for this is because of how much effort Hyundai puts, not just into promoting their brand, but educating the populace on what it represents and continues to do for the country. One of the ways in which they do this is through the Hyundai Motorstudio.
Mobility theme park
Hyundai describes their Motorstudios as a mobility theme park. Perhaps a more accurate description Filipinos will be able to relate to is it’s a sort of Mind Museum for cars. It’s packed with exhibits and interactive displays that show the history of the Hyundai motor company, how their cars are made, and where they are headed in the future.
There are already six Hyundai Motorstudios around the world. There are four within Korea (Seoul, Goyang, Busan, Hanam), one in Beijing, and one in Indonesia (Senayam Park).
Each motorstudio takes guests on an interesting automotive journey, by showing, hearing, and touching Hyundai’s mobility history.
Motorstudio Seoul
Our first visit was to Hyundai Motorstudio Seoul, a five-story facility in the heart of the city. At this particular time, Hyundai marked a milestone of producing 100 million units. Its ‘One step further’ exhibition showed how Hyundai started from its very first all the way to its daunting milestone. As such, some very interesting vehicles were on display like a Ford Cortina Mk2 which Hyundai built under license, and its very first production vehicle, the Pony, which went on to be a popular family car and even a taxi in some countries.
As you can expect, several models from Hyundai’s history, like the Excel, Elantra, and Sonata are on display. Yet even more interesting are time capsules like a recreation of their design office, classic advertisements shown on a CRT television, or the scale model recreation of its pony production line.
Motorstudio Goyang
Right after Motorstudio Seoul was a tour of Goyang, the largest Motorstudio of them all. It boasts of distinct architecture on the outside and expansive interiors for the exhibit space.
The main hall showcases the current Hyundai, Hyundai trucks, and Genesis lineup, flanked by massive wall-to-wall LCD screens with animations created by their own in-house AI.
One of the most enjoyable exhibits were of car construction. Here, cars in various stages of assembly wait for guests to press buttons on the exhibits. Once pressed, robot arms (also built by Hyundai) attach doors, windshield, and chairs to these vehicles. There’s even one just for painting, which uses interesting hologram technology to simulate paint.
Another interesting exhibit shows off how our future would be like with fully-autonomous vehicles. By stepping inside one such prototype, guests can experience what it’s like to travel by merely selecting a destination, while chatting with your fellow passengers and watch the scenery around you.
It’s not all about cars either as some exhibits are dedicated to Hyundai’s other innovations like its moving sculpture made simply of several poles that rise and descend, a 4D ride featuring Hyundai’s rescue drones built by its latest acquisition, Boston Dynamics, and interesting sculptures made out of Hyundai car parts.
A bright future
I’ve been to many automotive museums before. Admittedly, if you’re not already a car enthusiast who can instantly recognize classic models or don’t already know the history of some brands, it’s hard for outsiders to feel the same enthusiasm. Yet the Hyundai Motorstudios, through their interactive exhibits, are a great way to turn even the most apathetic outsider into a passionate car aficionado. For any Filipinos visiting Korea, I highly recommend dropping by at least one of these Motorstudios.
At the end of these Motorstudio tours, one can’t help but be impressed by all that Hyundai has already achieved so far. It also gets one incredibly excited for the future.
Who wouldn’t want to live in a place where rescue drones are deployed at the first sign of a fire or earthquake? Finally, I had my doubts about autonomous driving vehicles until experiencing just how enjoyable these rolling living rooms could be thanks to that exhibit.
It’s no surprise that Koreans have a nearly impenetrable loyalty when it comes to their car brands. Even global giants like Toyota and Volkswagen have trouble establishing a presence in the country. And it’s not hard to see why. Hyundai vehicles have come so far in a little over half a century and it looks set to lead the way in the next half century.