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Hyundai has unveiled its newest concept car, the "Santa Fe" sports utility vehicle, at the 1999 North American International Auto Show in Detroit this week.

The worldwide debut of the Santa Fe heralds the company's first foray into the expanding four-wheel drive market.

The Santa Fe is the first four-wheel drive designed, engineered and developed by Hyundai, South Korea's leading automotive manufacturer. A production version of the concept vehicle will go on sale in the spring of next year at Hyundai dealerships across the United States, with the market launch in Australia expected in the Year 2000.

"With the Santa Fe, Hyundai has demonstrated its continuing commitment to manufacturing high-quality, popular vehicles which are competitive in world markets," said Doug Croker, managing director of Hyundai Automotive Distributors Australia.

"Four-wheel drive vehicles such as the Sante Fe concept, are very popular among Australians. In response to this market demand, Hyundai will launch the Santa Fe here next year."

The Hyundai concept four-wheel drive is named after the capital city in the American Southwest, known both for its rugged Western character and its sophisticated design and style sense. Takings its name, logo and styling cues from the spirit of the U.S. Southwestern desert, the Santa Fe features bronze and terracotta body colors, a sand-toned leather-wrapped interior, and warm-chrome finish on windmill-style alloy wheels.

The Santa Fe is powered by an all-aluminum, 24-valve, double-overhead-cam V6 engine, transversely mounted. The transmission is a four-speed, electronically controlled, fully adaptive automatic.

Power is transmitted to the wheels through an electronically controlled, all-wheel drive system with viscous coupling that seamlessly engages the rear wheels for added traction when needed – without any input from the driver.

The Santa Fe has MacPherson strut front suspension. At the back is a semi-trailing arm rear suspension.

With strong character lines over front and rear wheel wells, the Santa Fe shows Hyundai family resemblance to the Coupe and Sonata. At the same time, the Santa Fe's body-side contours recall a desert landscape and give the Hyundai more styling personality than traditionally angular SUVs.

Big 17-inch wheels and tyres supply the Santa Fe with an aggressive stance on the road, and large ovoid headlamps are placed at the corners of the front end to create an image of size and presence.

The Santa Fe is similar in size to the Holden Rodeo, Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV 4. Designed to meet the driving demands of most four-wheel drive buyers, the Santa Fe was built to drive like a car, with a definite on-road focus, yet serve as an excellent vehicle in all weather and limited-traction conditions.

The Santa Fe boasts a number of everyday convenience items to tailored toward the four-wheel or sports utility buyer.

In addition to universal-size cup-holders, the Santa Fe is equipped with water bottle holders. Unusual "free-floating" door handles make exits easier while side pockets with lids sit beneath the arm rests. Two 12-volt in-dash outlets, and one placed in the rear, handle various electrical accessory needs. Also in back is a handy lift-out picnic table, accessible through the large rear hatch that is mounted on telescoping struts. The spare tyre stows out of the way beneath the rear of the car.

The Santa Fe has important safety features, such as second-generation, depowered dual frontal airbags. A Passenger-Presence Detection system shuts off the passenger-side airbags when a small child, or no one, is in the seat. The front seat belts also come with automatic pretensioners to cinch the belt in the event of a collision.

A team of designers at the Hyundai California Design Center created the original Santa Fe. The vehicle was designed in the United States because America has been the home of the sport utility (or four-wheel drive) vehicle. However, trends around the world were carefully analyzed during the research and design phases of the vehicle's preparation.

Hyundai's other design centers in Germany, Tokyo and Seoul were consulted during the project and their input was incorporated into the final design.

Hyundai Motor America, based in Fountain Valley, California, is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai cars are distributed in the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through nearly 500 dealerships nationwide.

In 1995, the Hyundai California Design studio (HCD), located in Fountain Valley, Calif., U.S.A., began a cooperative venture with Hyundai design studios in Korea to develop and engineer an all-new sport utility vehicle. Hyundai's first four-wheel drive would be engineered to provide consumers with V6 power and strength at an affordable price. It also would feature enough room to carry families and cargo in comfort and style, without being too large or fuel-thirsty. While designers kept the North American market first in mind, other markets around the world also were considered important and the needs and desires of these global consumers were accounted for.

In addition to Korean-American cooperation on the project, additional input was received from Hyundai's other design centers in Japan and Germany. While not involved on a day-to-day basis, ideas were freely shared among all of Hyundai's multi-nation design centers, making the result a true international project.

The Santa Fe concept vehicle is the first expression of these design goals.

"The joint venture between California and Korea was in direct response to what our dealers were telling us they needed for their customers," said Finbarr O'Neill, president and chief executive officer of Hyundai Motor America.

"HCD was a natural partner for our Korean designers because the United States has the largest market for sport utility vehicles and American-based design teams best know the interests and desires of the four-wheel drive consumer segment."

Throughout development of the Santa Fe, Korean and U.S. designers aimed at creating an four-wheel drive that was well-proportioned, one that featured a modern, sophisticated look inside and out, and also had sufficient off-road ruggedness to meet the needs of the average four-wheel drive buyer.

Hyundai designers crafted a four-wheel drive that was small enough for good maneuverability, easy parking and reasonable fuel consumption, yet large enough for plenty of luggage. Without being overly tall and with a low access height, the Santa Fe provides a commanding seating position with a better view of the road than passenger cars.

The Santa Fe's width helps it meet the needs of consumers who feel the smallest four-wheel drives lack sufficient space. A wider stance than most mini four-wheel drives, plus aggressive 17-inch wheels and tyres, also give the latest Hyundai design a feeling of off-road strength and ruggedness.

With the exterior, the Santa Fe needed to encompass the styling of the current Hyundai product line. Family ties to Hyundai's Coupe are obvious when looking at the character lines over the Santa Fe's front and rear wheel wells, while its large ovoid headlights are reminiscent of the Sonata.

These passenger-car cues give the Santa Fe's body a modern, sophisticated look. Meanwhile, inside, driver and passengers will find purposeful placement of the sound system and ventilation controls, an all-leather interior, and thoughtful touches such as the "free-floating" door handles, triple power outlets and pull-out picnic table. The result of all this work was seen in the results of early consumer clinics. Participants clearly responded to the vehicle as an four-wheel drive but indicated they saw it as luxurious and sophisticated. They indicated it appeared to provide ruggedness and security but with a surprising level of luxury.

Established in 1990, the Hyundai California Design studio plays a vital role in the company's commitment to advancing concepts that satisfy both the North American and world markets. Working closely with Hyundai studios in Korea, HCD has long demonstrated its ability in developing innovative automotive design concepts with its "HCD" series of unique futuristic concept vehicles.

The styling of today's Hyundai Coupe flows directly from HCD II Coupe which debuted in 1993 at the New York Auto Show. HCD I was first shown at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in 1992. This convertible two-seater had lines which were precursors to HCD II and Coupe.

HCD II also was first seen in 1995 at the North American International Auto Show. It was a combination of a sports car and sports utility in one package, the first time in recent history that such a vehicle had been displayed. Since that time, several other concept vehicles have been seen with this cross-over approach.

The Santa Fe is Hyundai California Design's first pure sport utility vehicle. It shows the progression and diversity of thought present in the HCD studio.

Hyundai Motor America, based in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai cars are distributed in the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through nearly 500 dealerships nationwide.

The Hyundai Santa Fe concept sport utility vehicle combines the size, cargo capacity, versatility, comfort and luxury of a traditional compact four-wheel drive with the refinement and smooth car-like ride of the most modern unibody mini-four-wheel drives. The Santa Fe is an all-weather vehicle with off-road capability with modern safety features. Its size, plus an available all-aluminum V6 engine and a sophisticated all-wheel drive system with viscous coupling, place the Santa Fe in a new category among four-wheel drives.

A Hyundai family resemblance can be seen in the Santa Fe's strong character lines over the front and rear wheel wells. Large ovoid headlights at the corners of the front end instill an image of size and presence. Big 17-inch wheels and tyres supply the Santa Fe with an aggressive on-road stance. The Hyundai California Design Center crafted the original Santa Fe.