A new car warranty war is brewing and Hyundai is the latest brand tipped to gear up and enter the fray with a beefed-up warranty.
A source with knowledge on the matter told CarsGuide Hyundai is considering an eight-year warranty on its new cars, up from its current five-year guarantee.
Five year warranties are no longer the benchmark with many brands pushing to seven or even 10 years.
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A Hyundai Australia spokesperson said the brand is always studying ways to improve its competitive advantage in the market but had nothing to report on an eight year warranty.
The new longer warranty would catapult the brand above its stablemate Kia, which offers a seven-year/unlimited km warranty.
Mitsubishi was the first to go to a 10 year/200,000km warranty, but you need to service your car at a Mitsubishi dealer otherwise it reverts to a five year/100,000km warranty.
Nissan announced a similar program earlier this year with owners entitled to a 10 year/300,000km warranty if they serviced their cars at a Nissan dealer.
The Japanese brand even backdated the warranty to cover vehicles purchased new from January 1, 2021.
Chinese brand MG also has a 10 year/250,000km for all its vehicles, including its electric vehicle range.
GWM, another top 10 selling brand, follows closely with a seven year/unlimited km warranty.
Hyundai’s rumoured new warranty doesn’t quite match those front runners but puts it well ahead of rivals Mazda, Toyota and Subaru.
The move could be in response to the brand’s slide down the sales charts, a wave of new rivals and what has been forecast as a tough year for carmakers in Australia.
Hyundai is now the sixth best selling brand in the country, through the first two months of this year. It is losing ground to Mitsubishi and sister brand Kia.
Hyundai sales are down about three per cent this year, led by a drop off in its i30 small car and Tucson mid-size SUV.
Hyundai also faces competition from new budget-focused brands such as Chery and the maturation of upstart brands GWM and MG, which have both established themselves as top 10 sellers with ever growing ranges.
The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries has pointed to a flagging consumer demand and cost of living pressures as the main reason for a circa-nine per cent drop in new car sales the past month.
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