Hyundai eyes No2 spot

The Hyundai i30 arrived at an ideal time. Photo / Supplied

Hyundai NZ, a brand that used to be thought of as the poor cousin of car manufacturers, is now pushing Ford and Holden for second place in the New Zealand car market - and pundits say it wants to knock Toyota off the top of the passenger vehicle table in this country.

Hyundai, the country's largest independent car distributor, says hard work and a bit of luck enabled it to grow throughout this decade, despite the global financial crisis dealing a big blow to the market in general.

The company has grown from a 1.84 per cent market share in 2002 to 7.95 per cent last year. It sold 6715 vehicles last year, compared with 1540 in 2002.

But Toyota, which produces New Zealand's most popular vehicles, sold 18,042 vehicles last year and had 21.3 per cent of the market - so Hyundai has a way to go yet.

Hyundai marketing manager Darren Kirkland said: "We're not too caught up in where we land on the ladder."

The company was making an effort to target its marketing to New Zealand consumers and had experienced 19 per cent year-on-year growth last year and a similar rate the year before. "We've got a really good team and product."

Growth was also helped by the fact that the product had improved, from the unfashionable Pony the company produced in 1984 to the popular i30 hatch, winner of the 2009 AA Motoring Excellence award. Kirkland said the i30 came out at just the right time, hitting the peak of the recession. "It was diesel, economical, all the things you want in a recession."

Although the market shrank by 30 per cent in 2007 and 2008, Hyundai still managed to grow, with 300 more cars sold in 2008 than in 2007.

Brent Martin chose a Hyundai when he was looking for a new car because it was economical. "It had all the features of the more expensive brands but at a better price."

One in 10 new cars sold in New Zealand is now a Hyundai.

Stella Stocks, AA motoring services general manager, said it was a sign of a shift in the market. "Back even five years ago, Korean cars weren't seen as on a par with the Japanese but they are now equal. Twenty years ago there was that perception that Japanese cars weren't as good. Chinese cars will probably go the same way."