Hyundai Motor, Kia to enter market for used car-selling business

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. are reportedly in the last stage of their preparation for their entrance into the second-hand car market. The automakers are said to be starting their used car-selling business next year.

Once in operation, Hyundai Motor and Kia’s used car business will include services - inspection, certification and selling of second-hand vehicles to customers in South Korea. Business insiders said on Monday, Dec. 26, that Hyundai Motor Group, which also owns the Kia vehicle brand, is reviewing some locations where it will be storing the used cars.

The company is currently inspecting Yangsan, Gyeongnam Province, as a potential site. If approved, this will be the site for vehicle storage as well as distribution area, while the trading will be done online through a new website that the company is building.

According to Pulse News, there are no specific details yet as Hyundai Motor and Kia’s parent company has yet to make final decisions on many things. Then again, the only confirmed information as of now is the fact that the second-hand car business is slated to begin in the second half of 2023.

The new business will be on trial in January, and at this stage, both Hyundai Motor and Kia are allowed to sell 5,000 used cars each. It was noted that imported carmakers in the country are already selling used units of their own brand, such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz. They are doing well and sold around 10,000 cars last year.

Hyundai Motor Group’s jump into the used car market is expected to tackle the growing complaints of consumers that have been emerging from asymmetric information in trade. It was added that Kia Motor also intends to set up some reconditioning centers that will be exclusive for certified used cars across the nation.

Finally, at the centers, Kia will offer various services such as vehicle diagnosis, test drive, quality certification, commercialization, and exhibition. The inspection at the reconditioning centers will be done in real-time, where customers can directly view the process of transforming second-hand vehicles into high-quality units.

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