Hyundai Motor Company is planning to promote its electronically-controlled full-time four-wheel drive system (All Wheel Drive) called ‘HTRAC’, which was only applied to Genesis brand, as its own independent brand. Just like Audi’s ‘Quattro’, BMW’s ‘xDrive’, and Mercedes-Benz’s ‘4Matic’, it is planning to promote HTRAC as the four-wheel drive brand that represents Hyundai Motor Company.
According to industries on the 12th, Hyundai Motor Company is planning to expand applicability of HTRAC, which started in 2013 with second generation Genesis (DH) model and was only applied to Genesis G70, G80, and EQ900 afterwards, towards other Hyundai cars such as SUVs.
HTRAC is a compound word of ‘H’ from Hyundai Motor Company and ‘Traction’ that symbolizes technological characteristic of four-wheel drive system. It is a system that electronically controls distribution of power of front and rear drive shafts depending on road conditions and is only applied to Genesis brand cars as of now.
Unlike normal mechanical four-wheel drive system with limited changes in driving power of front and rear wheels, HTRAC detects road conditions and speed and can freely control braking power and driving power of front and rear wheels without any limitation. It also provides stable driving performance on slippery roads, sudden cornering, and snowy and icy roads during winter seasons.
Reason why Hyundai Motor Company is planning to promote HTRAC as its independent brand is because HTRAC’s technical skills are already proved by Genesis brand and HTRAC is already drawing positive responses from consumers. Currently more than 60% of three Genesis brand cars that are on markets are applied with HTRAC. In case of its flagship sedan called EQ900, 90% of EQ900s are applied with HTRAC. Having independent brand like HTRAC also has a symbolic meaning of having independent four-wheel drive technology just like German brands.
New ‘Santa Fe’, which will be mass-produced in February of 2018, will be the first Hyundai car besides Genesis brand cars to be applied with HTRAC. Until now, Hyundai cars that were applied with electronic four-wheel drive system in the past had only systematic names such as ‘4WD’ or ‘AWD’.
Next-generation HTRAC that will be applied to new Santa Fe will be newly applied with ‘Multi-terrain’ technology that provides optimum driving power on various road conditions. Multi-terrain allows a driver to select many driving modes such as normal mode, snowy road mode, muddy road, sandy road, and off-road depending on road conditions.
Hyundai Motor Company is planning to apply HTRAC technology to various cars that will be released in the future. It is likely that Hyundai will also apply HTRAC to its high-performance model ‘Veloster N’ that is expected to be released in 2018.
“While four-wheel drive systems in the past were only applied to off-road cars such as SUVs, four-wheel drive systems nowadays are applied to many sedans with luxury cars at the center due to increase in demands from consumers towards stable driving performance.” said a representative for an industry. “It is expected that when Hyundai Motor Company has its own independent four-wheel drive brand, it will greatly help in improving image of its brand.”
Staff Reporter Jung, Chiyeon | chiyeon@etnews.com