Photo: Hyundai
He joined Hyundai Motor America in 2007 as vice president of sales. Thanks to good results, David Zuchowski got a promotion in 2010 to executive vice president of sales. His current role, as president and chief executive officer of Hyundai Motor America, came in 2014. But as of today, Mr. Zuchowski is out.
Effective immediately, Hyundai fired U.S. head honcho Zuchowski because he failed to meet sales objectives. That’s what Automotive News claims, citing sources familiar to this sales-related mess-up. In Zuchowski’s place, Hyundai Motor America higher-ups named Jerry Flannery as temporary head honcho. Until today, he filled the roles of executive vice president and general counsel.
The report underlines that the automaker’s “dealer body was informed Tuesday night of the decision.” An official announcement of the whole deal is due to be made today. The more pressing question is, why did the big boys over at Hyundai Motor America resort to this apparently radical solution?
I mean come on, something is amiss here. To make my point, it’s best to quote the titles of the latest sales reports: “Hyundai Motor America reports record November sales,” “Hyundai Motor America delivers October sales record,” and “Hyundai Motor America reports record September sales.”
Clearly, something is off with this picture. But on the other hand, I understand what made Hyundai react so severely. From the three sales reports mentioned earlier, the U.S. arm is proud of the Tucson, Santa Fe, and Santa Fe Sport.
Indeed, these are all crossover SUVs, which means that small cars and sedans don’t fare exactly great as far as sales are concerned. Genesis sold 1,306 units in November 2016, which is not a lot for a brand with two cars in its lineup. By comparison, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class outsold the G80 and G90 last month in the United States, with 1,475 units to its name.
Whatever happened behind closed doors, we might never know. But as things are at the present moment, Hyundai Motor America has a steep hill to climb. Until 2020, the South Korean automaker plans to introduce 14 alternative-fuel models, as well as a flurry of Genesis-branded sedans and SUVs. Speaking of which, the BMW 3 Series-rivaling Genesis G70 sedan will look gorgeous!
The report underlines that the automaker’s “dealer body was informed Tuesday night of the decision.” An official announcement of the whole deal is due to be made today. The more pressing question is, why did the big boys over at Hyundai Motor America resort to this apparently radical solution?
I mean come on, something is amiss here. To make my point, it’s best to quote the titles of the latest sales reports: “Hyundai Motor America reports record November sales,” “Hyundai Motor America delivers October sales record,” and “Hyundai Motor America reports record September sales.”
Clearly, something is off with this picture. But on the other hand, I understand what made Hyundai react so severely. From the three sales reports mentioned earlier, the U.S. arm is proud of the Tucson, Santa Fe, and Santa Fe Sport.
Indeed, these are all crossover SUVs, which means that small cars and sedans don’t fare exactly great as far as sales are concerned. Genesis sold 1,306 units in November 2016, which is not a lot for a brand with two cars in its lineup. By comparison, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class outsold the G80 and G90 last month in the United States, with 1,475 units to its name.
Whatever happened behind closed doors, we might never know. But as things are at the present moment, Hyundai Motor America has a steep hill to climb. Until 2020, the South Korean automaker plans to introduce 14 alternative-fuel models, as well as a flurry of Genesis-branded sedans and SUVs. Speaking of which, the BMW 3 Series-rivaling Genesis G70 sedan will look gorgeous!
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