Hyundai Capital Adds Business-Focused Mobility Services
Hyundai Capital, the financing arm of Hyundai Motor Group, has added a car-sharing service in South Korea to its growing portfolio of mobility offerings.
The new service, called “Deal Car” or “Delivery Car” started a beta program in early September with a goal of pursuing “shared growth” with small and medium-sized business, the company said in a statement. Traditionally, car-sharing services only use cars and garages owned by a single company, making it difficult for small-sized rental companies to have their own car-sharing business due to startup costs associated to compete.
That’s where Hyundai is stepping in, by allowing these small and medium-sized enterprises to share a single platform for car-sharing. The finances, car-sharing, and marketing costs are all supported by Hyundai Capital and the affiliated rental corporations are responsible for servicing vehicles and managing systems, the company said.
“By using the best resources that each partner company has, Delivery Car offers a high quality of service,” a spokesperson said in a published report, adding, “Delivery Car offers a wider selection of vehicles from full-sized cars and SUVs to electric vehicles with help by our partners.”
On the customer-end of things, the program works by having an agent deliver the cars at a specific time to customers at the location that customer designates. Agents then brief customers about the car and arrive later at the customers’ location when the customer no longer needs the car and takes it back. “Therefore, customers don’t need to worry about issues that are linked to car maintenance and security,” the company said.
This service is not Hyundai’s first in the car-sharing space. The OEM launched a free-floating car sharing service in the Amsterdam in October 2017 with 100 Ioniq electric vehicles. Additionally, the captive signed a deal with electric car-sharing startup WaiveCar. Hyundai is one of several OEMs, including Ford Motor Co., Daimler AG, and Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles to have mobility and autonomous vehicle ambitions. Hyundai is working on its own autonomous system, with plans for self-driving abilities to operate on highways by 2020 and urban driving by 2030 with a particular focus on affordability, the company has previously said.
