Hyundai Wins Red Dot Design Award for IONIQ Alternative-Fuel Car

Hyundai Motor has bagged the renowned Red Dot design award once more for its innovative design for the IONIQ eco-friendly model that will be soon hit the retail market. Hyundai won the coveted award in the Vehicle category for this model.

The Red Dot Design Award is given on an annual basis by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Germany in order to recognize the best products with the best design in every category. The jury for the award consisted of 38 design experts, journalists and academics drawn from 25 countries across the world. Hyundai won this award in the Vehicles category on the basis of its future-orientated design of the IONIQ, which is the company’s first dedicated eco-friendly model. The contest attracted over 5, 214 entries from 57 countries making the Red Dot contest one of the most intense and largest product competitions in the world.

The IONIQ officially made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March and will be introduced in a few select international markets at the retail level during 2016. The IONIQ takes an altogether different approach to green motoring by offering three different powertrain options to motorists within a shared vehicle platform rather than using only one energy source which is paired with a drivetrainer. The different options include parallel petrol-electric hybrid, where both the patrol and electric engines work hand in hand; the plug-in petrol electric hybrid, in which the mainstay is an electric engine which is used for a limited range and is supplemented by a petrol engine for longer distances; and a fully electric option for pure zero emissions motoring.

Commenting on the vehicle, Jin (James) Kim, Vice-President and Head of Hyundai Africa and Middle East said the IONIQ is definitely a unique concept when it comes to greener motoring, and the Red Dot design award highlights Hyundai’s forward-looking design philosophy. So far, all alternative-fuel vehicles offered motorists only one technology, like hybrid drive or pure electric. The IONIQ allows them more flexibility depending on their specific needs and this will lead more customers to adopt environmentally friendly vehicles.”

By selecting the IONIQ for the Red Dot award, the Red Dot jury recognized its evolutionary design and its use of new eco-friendly materials. IONIQ represents the new direction Hyundai’s future models are likely to take when it comes to styling, with its clean, refined style and its coupe-like silhouette.