Chung Yoo-suk, vice president of Hyundai Motor’s domestic business division, introduces the company’s new mini SUV Casper Electric at the 2024 Busan International Mobility Show on June 27, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jul. 4 (Korea Bizwire) — Full-fledged production of Casper Electric, Hyundai Motor Co.’s highly anticipated all-electric mini SUV, will begin in South Korea’s southwestern city of Gwangju later this month, according to industry officials, with a target output of 21,400 units by the end of the year.
Gwangju Global Motors (GGM), a Hyundai Motor contract manufacturer based in the namesake city, located some 270 kilometers southwest of Seoul, announced Wednesday it will begin full-fledged production of the Casper Electric from July 15.
GGM said its target output is currently set at 21,400 units by December, up 23 percent from its initial goal of 17,400 units. The plant has begun trial production of Casper Electric since February and has so far manufactured around 300 units.
Unveiled at the 2024 Busan International Motor Show held last month, Casper Electric is the electrified version of the Casper first introduced in 2021 but with a suite of overhauled improvements.
Compared with the existing Casper, the new electric vehicle (EV) has an extended body and wheelbase to deliver more interior space and a rugged road presence. Although based on the design legacy of the 2021 Casper, the new EV incorporates new industrial design motifs inspired from Hyundai’s bigger EV brand Ioniq.
Casper Electric is equipped with a 49kWh nickel-cobalt-manganese battery, offering a driving range of up to 315 kilometers on a single charge. It can be charged from 10 percent to 80 percent in just 30 minutes.
This file photo from Oct. 10, 2024, shows a production line for Hyundai Motor’s Casper mini SUV at Gwangju Global Motors in Gwangju, some 270 kilometers southwest of Seoul. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
The EV will be sold under the name Inster in overseas markets. It will launch first in South Korea this summer, followed by Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
GGM has produced the original petrol-powered version of Casper since 2021.
The factory was launched in 2021 under a 2019 deal among workers and employers as well as the private and public sectors to promote job creation in Gwangju. Hyundai Motor has also invested in the production plant.
GGM’s accumulative output has topped 130,000 units since its opening.
“This is the result of a combination of factors, including the appointment of professional management, a commitment to labor-management cooperation, the securing of top-quality technology and support from the public,” a GGM official said.
(Yonhap)
