Every Car Brand Hyundai Owns In 2024

As with any industry, big automotive firms are never content with having just one car brand. Whether it's Toyota with Lexus and Daihatsu, Honda with Acura, or General Motors with brands like Chevrolet, GMC, and Buick, leading automotive companies are forever seeking ways to expand their market presence, maintain a competitive edge, as well as cater to diverse customer needs. A multi-brand strategy helps them achieve these while growing. However, attaining an umbrella brand status is a slow, gradual process for most, and Hyundai was no different.

Hyundai Motor Company was founded in 1967 by South Korean entrepreneur Chung Ju-yung, and in 1968, it launched its first assembly plant, as well as what is the world's largest car manufacturing plant as of 2024, the Ulsan assembly plant. Hyundai's maiden car production effort was with the Cortina, which was assembled at the Ulsan facility in 1968 in partnership with Ford. Several decades down the line, Hyundai has not only gone from being an assembler to a maker of some of the most compelling vehicles in the world, but it now also owns three other car brands. Here is every car brand Hyundai owns in 2024.

After the 1997 Asian financial crisis brought East and Southeast Asia to their knees, Kia was put under bankruptcy protection by the South Korean government due to its inability to pay back the $370 million it owed other companies. A year later, Hyundai outbid three other contestants at auction in 1998 to acquire Kia. Since then, Hyundai has assumed control of the Seoul-based automaker, which has enjoyed great success since the takeover.

In 2023 alone, Kia sold 140,780 units of the Sportage, making it one of the best-selling vehicles in the U.S. The Telluride is another SUV that has been a major success for Kia. Since launching for the 2020 model year, it has sold an impressive 500,867 units, with 110,765 units moved in 2023. In addition to these SUVs, Kia's vehicle lineup also includes a broad array of compelling models, including the Kia Soul, Sorento, Seltos, K5, numerous hybrid models, and the upcoming K4 Sedan, which will be a replacement for the outgoing Kia Forte.

Unlike Kia, Genesis was founded as a brand under Hyundai's ownership and isn't a result of an acquisition. Genesis Motor began life as the Hyundai Genesis, a luxury midsize car that launched as an all-new vehicle for the 2009 model year, but later became a standalone brand in November 2015. Hyundai made the decision to establish Genesis as an independent marque in a bid to tap into the luxury car market, which was previously dominated by established luxury brands like Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Lexus, and BMW.

As Hyundai's premium brand, Genesis released its first cars — the G80 and G90 — in the U.S. in 2016 ahead of the 2017 model year. The G80 was offered as a midsize luxury car and competes for market share against the likes of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, BMW 5 Series, Lexus ES, Lexus GS, Cadillac CTS, and Audi A6. While the G80 was the natural evolution of the Hyundai Genesis that launched in 2009, the G90 was an all-new model that was introduced to compete with the BMW 6 Series, Cadillac XTS, Audi A7, and Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class in the luxury large car segment.

Like Genesis, Ioniq was originally introduced by Hyundai, not bought over. It started as a model (known as the Hyundai Ioniq) before it eventually spun off into a sub-brand. The Hyundai Ioniq is a compact hatchback that was offered in hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and full battery-electric versions between the 2017 and 2022 model years. With its name being a portmanteau of "ion" and "unique," Ioniq was established in 2020 with a focus on making electric vehicles.

Since becoming a Hyundai sub-brand, Ioniq has released the Ioniq 5 crossover SUV and Ioniq 6 midsize sedan. It also has a supercar-rivaling version of the Ioniq 5, the Ioniq 5 N, which boasts an astounding 641 horsepower, a 0-60 mph sprint time of 3.25 seconds, and a top speed of 162 mph. In addition, the Ioniq 9 midsize SUV is due to debut later in 2024 as a three-row SUV based on the Seven electric concept revealed at the 2021 Los Angeles Auto Show.