Hyundai Motor has overtaken Toyota in car sales in the Brazilian market, rising to 4th place.

According to the automotive industry and the Brazilian Automotive Dealers Federation (Fenabrave) on the 11th, Hyundai sold 205,787 units in Brazil last year. This is an increase of 10.5% compared to the previous year, surpassing Toyota by about 2,000 units.

Brazil is the 6th largest car market in the world and the largest finished car market in South America. Last year, passenger car sales in Brazil recorded 1,948,000 units, an increase of 13% from the previous year.

With a population of 212 million, Brazil has great market potential and is geographically advantageous for exports to various South American countries such as Argentina.

For Hyundai Motor Group, which is aiming to become the world's second-largest car seller, the Brazilian market is one of the essential markets that must be captured.

The sales difference between Hyundai Motor Group and the second-ranked Volkswagen Group last year was 1.79 million units. Hyundai Motor Group recorded four times the sales of Volkswagen in the United States and is also dominant in Southeast Asia.

Considering that the Chinese market has virtually been occupied by domestic brands and the European market is Volkswagen's home turf, the only place where Hyundai Motor Group can reverse sales is virtually the Latin American market.

Seeing this possibility, Hyundai established a production plant with an annual capacity of 150,000 units in Piracicaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2012.

In 2019, it was expanded to a scale of 210,000 units, and a research and development center for localized vehicles is also in operation. The cumulative production of the Brazilian plant last year is estimated to be 2.25 million units.

The 'HB20' and 'Creta' are key models leading Hyundai's growth in the Brazilian market.

The HB20 is a vehicle that introduces the 'FFV' fuel system, which mixes sugar cane-extracted ethanol and gasoline. In Brazil, vehicles with the FFV system, which mixes ethanol extracted from sugar cane and gasoline, are sold a lot.

Hyundai introduced the HB20 after first introducing the FFV system at its Brazilian plant in 2012. The HB20 sold 97,079 units last year, ranking third in sales by model.

The small SUV 'Creta' also achieved success in the Brazilian market. The Creta, which is suitable for the local characteristics of having many unpaved roads, sold 69,000 units last year, ranking 7th in sales by model.

However, in the Brazilian electric vehicle market, Chinese brands are showing remarkable growth. Last year's pure electric vehicle sales were 60,000 units, a 225% increase from the previous year. BYD accounted for 64% of the electric vehicle market and 42% of the hybrid car market.

Hyundai is selling the Ioniq 5, but its share of the Brazilian electric vehicle market is less than 1%.

Accordingly, Hyundai Motor Group plans to invest 1.1 billion dollars in the Brazilian market by 2032. Global hit models such as the Kona Electric and Kia EV5 will be released sequentially, and the development of FFV-only powertrains and the supply of hydrogen fuel cell systems will also be promoted.