Hyundai officially announced today that the launch date for its new luxury sedan, codenamed VI, will be February 2009. The 2009 Hyundai VI luxury sedan will be available upon lunch with either a 3.8-liter Lambda V6 engine or a 4.6-liter Tau V8 powerplant. There will also be a 5.0-liter variant of the Tau engine available for the new 2009 Hyundai VI luxury sedan that will come in the second half of the next year.
The 2009 Hyundai VI luxury sedan will be sold only on the Korean markets with no plans for the U.S. and European ones.
The 2009 Hyundai VI will showcase the brand's most advanced technology including a second-generation Vehicle Stability Management System (VSM2), a Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS) and a Pre-Safety Seatbelt System.
Hyundai Press Release:
Hyundai Motor Company, South Korea’s largest automaker, will launch its much-anticipated luxury car codenamed VI in Feb. 2009.
Promising to provide the pinnacle of luxury and to showcase Hyundai's most advanced technologies, the VI will include among its sophisticated safety features a second-generation Vehicle Stability
Management System (VSM2), a Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS) which employs a vision sensor to monitor traffic lane markers and a Pre-Safety Seatbelt System which on detecting an imminent front-end collision, will automatically reel-in the safety belts to maximize the safety of the occupants.
The new flagship of the Hyundai fleet will serve as a replacement for the ten-year-old Equus (badged as Centennial in export markets). Unlike the front-wheel drive Equus, VI adopts a rear-wheel drive architecture which will make it a more credible competitor against the Lexus LS460, BMW 7-Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class--all rwd models.
Longer, wider and taller than its predecessor, VI will measure 5,160mm in length, 1,900mm in width and 1,495mm in height. VI will come with a 3.8-liter Lambda V-6 engine while the 4.6-liter Tau V-8 will be offered as an option.
The VI arrives in Korean showrooms in Feb. 2009, while a top-of-the-range limousine edition will bow in the second half of 2009 and will feature a stretched wheelbase plus a 5.0-liter variant of the Tau V-8.
There are currently no plans to export VI to the North American or European markets.
