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Hyundai Appoints Another BMW Man as Head of Performance and Motorsport Division

BMW probably doesn't appreciate that we're using their photos in this story about Hyundai, but Korea's largest automaker just appointed Thomas Schemera, previously the head of sales and marketing for BMW M, as the boss of their newly-established High Performance Vehicle & Motorsport Division.
Hyundai Appoints Another BMW Man as Head of Performance and Motorsport Division 3 photos
Photo: BMW
Hyundai Appoints Another BMW Man as Head of Performance and MotorsportHyundai Appoints Another BMW Man as Head of Performance and Motorsport
The branch will set shop in March, and Schemera will be in charge of streamlining Hyundai’s strategy, product planning, sales, and marketing capabilities for really hot cars, working between the headquarters and the company’s motorsport arm Hyundai Motorsport GmbH.

We're not exactly sure what that means, but perhaps the hot versions of new Hyundais will be baked in from the start, as was the case with the Honda Civic Type R. The Genesis brand also has a lot on its plate.

BMW had something like 15 years as the official safety car of the MotoGP, which is something Schemera was involved with. Perhaps his knowledge of carbon fiber wings, ceramic brakes, CFRP shells and Alcantara interiors will help take the G70, G80, and G90 to the next level.

Rather than focusing on lap record, the new Hyundai N division focuses on the emotional reaction, or as they called it the "driver’s heartbeats per minute (BPM)."

German-born Schemera, 55, played various key roles at BMW Group including the four-year service as the Vice President of Sales & Dealer Development for China, where he led the four-time increase in sales of BMW and BMW M models from 2005 to 2008.

Here's what Albert Biermann, President, and Head of Performance Development and High Performance Vehicle Development, had to say about his colleague: “Thomas Schemera is one of the most renowned experts in the high-performance vehicle business with experience in all of the world’s major markets. I am excited he is joining us, and I’m confident that his participation will help put Hyundai’s high-performance vehicle business onto the fast track."
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About the author: Mihnea Radu
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Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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