Hyundai Targets Australia’s Car-Sharing Market With Latest Investment

Hyundai Motor appears to be targeting Australia’s car-sharing market with its latest investment. South Korea’s No. 1 automotive company has reportedly invested $2 million in Australian car rental company Car Next Door.

Hyundai announced Wednesday that it has made an investment in Car Next Deer, a car-sharing company launched in 2013 that has about 62,000 members at present. The goal behind their partnership is to develop a mobile app to replace car keys, Korea Herald has learned.

The app that Hyundai and the peer-to-peer car-sharing firm will roll out will be called “Hyundai Auto Link” and it is going to function as a car key that remotely turns the engine on and off.

Hyundai said the app will enhance the convenience of Car Next Door users, since they will enjoy a smoother rental process once the app is out. The partners are looking to introduce the app later this year and roll it out to consumers by 2020 at the earliest.

According to Business News Australia, the fifth largest auto maker in the world struck up a deal with Car Next Door to ensure its cars would be the first “sharing ready” vehicles in the land Down Under.

The partnership will allow Car Next Door’s tech-platform to be included in the cars that Hyundai is releasing in the Australian market soon. Car owners can then easily list their vehicles for rent in the app when they are not using them.

The Hyundai Auto Link app will also simplify the renting process. Hyundai drivers can rent cars by the hour or day to members of Car Next Door’s car-sharing community. Vetted members will be able to access and drive listed vehicles with the use of their phones. This eliminates the need for users to borrow the car owners’ keys.

“Australians will be able to buy a Hyundai car with the potential to rent it out,” Hyundai Australia chief operating officer Scott Grant said. “This capability will be preinstalled and seamlessly integrated into Hyundai's Auto Link app, making it a simple matter to earn extra funds via Car Next Door's innovative sharing platform. We think it will be a great feature for Hyundai owners …”