Affordable electric car race heats up as Hyundai and European giants take on China

Chinese manufacturers have dramatically grown in the global auto industry, and their wide reach into the European market has sparked a sense of urgency in the established companies. Many high-ranking individuals from the Old Continent's auto industry have noted that Chinese vehicles offer not just good quality, but extremely competitive prices.

Thanks to massive support from the Chinese government, local producers can offer their customers incredibly low prices - prices so low that Western giants were caught unprepared. The disparity in cost between Chinese and European electric cars has prompted a revision of long-term strategies.

Companies such as Renault, Volkswagen, Skoda, and Cupra have announced their budget-friendly electric models, and have set a base price, which is also a threshold for what's considered "affordable," at around 20 thousand euros (approximately $23,060). South Korea may also enter this emerging market of budget electric models.

At the Autonews Europe Congress event in Prague, Hyundai Motor Europe's marketing chief, Andreas-Christ Christoph Hofmann, discussed their plans. He revealed that Hyundai has begun work on an affordable electric car to potentially spar with the upcoming Volkswagen ID.2 and its variants from other VAG brands.

- All of us in the industry know that the price point for this kind of car should be around 20,000 euros - Hofmann said, suggesting the possible cost of the future model.

As reported by CarScoops, the car may be dubbed the Ioniq 2, but it's best to avoid jumping to conclusions for now. There's no doubt that this car will be part of the electric Ioniq lineup, but currently, only two models are on the market: the crossover Ioniq 5 and the sedan Ioniq 6, with the large SUV, Ioniq 7, on the way. "Two," seems a reasonable addition to the lineup based on immediate competitors, but for the moment, it remains speculation.