What do two celebrated designers have in common?

Arguably the most beautiful machine unveiled this year was a concept car at Geneva – the Bentley EXP10 Speed 6. Perhaps also one with the most pedantic name, but never mind that! The concept in question was designed by one Luc Donckerwolke – in his role as Design Director at Bentley, Lamborghini, and Audi.

Now, you can’t say design and Audi in the same sentence without mentioning Peter Schreyer – the man who designed the original TT. I distinctly remember the first time I saw the Audi TT. It was in California in 1998, and I looked on – agog – as a silver TT drove past. It bore more resemblance to a lunar rover rather than an earthly sports car. To say that it was futuristic would be an understatement. But to say that it was influential would be entirely factual.

So what do Donckerwolke and Schreyer have in common? Well, other than the fact that they’ve both been a part of the VW Group in the recent past, and both are among the most celebrated car designers of our time, the answer is that they both work for Hyundai-Kia presently. Now if that doesn’t give you an indication that Hyundai means business, I don’t know what will.

Hyundai-Kia is not only the fastest growing automotive group of the last decade, but also the most improved. You only have to look at the current Hyundai Genesis, Kia Optima, Kia Soul, Hyundai Sonata, or even Hyundai i20 to see that for yourself. Take only the Sonata as a case in point. While the one dating back to 2005 looks like a Jaguar mated with a Perodua, the current Sonata looks like the love child of Brad Pitt and Scarlet Johansson – well, in a manner of speaking.

Perhaps I’m exaggerating to make a point, but the point is that the Hyundai-Kia brands appear to be the most focussed and ambitious automotive brands in the world today. And that’s great news for Indian customers. Just look at the Grand i10, Elite i20, and Creta of the past few years – each have come to represent the very best from their respective segments. More importantly, the competition has had to up its game just to stay within arm’s length.

So it’s a good thing, then, that India is front and centre in their focus currently – seems like a win-win really!