Say what you want about the Hyundai Pony, the car that was a Frankenstein combination of British and Korean management, Italian exterior design, Mitsubishi and Ford engineering. Yes, it had emission standards that didn’t allow it to be sold in the States (but it was one of the best selling models in Canada), its innards rusted prematurely, its heater core froze in cold winters, shock absorbers were non-existent, it burned oil, etc. An Italian once called it the “Hyundai Donkey.” However, the Pony does have its fans (including some Canada ones) and many Koreans view Hyundai’s first attempt at its own branded car with nostalgia and pride.
(Via the KT)
Acknowledging the Pony’s place in Korea’s history, the National Folk Museum will have the Pony in a special display entitled “Moments of Hardship and Glory” until Sept. 15.
30 Comments
My first car.
Definitely one of those nostalgia inducing vehicle for me. First family car. Unfortunately, must looking at one gives me motion sickness now.
Back when my ol’ man bought one, it wasn’t so much that it was a great car… It was the ONLY car to buy.
Hyundai recently announced that it will start manufacturing Hybrid + LPG cars in 2009. Despite being late to join the race to energy efficiency, this is a great move on Hyundai’s part. Meanwhile, GM will be soon releasing Volt (probably heavily borrowed from GM-Daewoo cars). How things have changed over 40 years.
Things always change. The US has a great opportunity to assume a position of leadership in alternative energies, which it has resisted doing in the past, depending on the winds of politics. Otherwise, Germany, Canada and other nations are poised to take that role. However, it is clear that someone must assume that leadership to steward the renewable energy revolution and I believe the stars are aligning for America if thee is a political environment that can allow for it.
When the Pony arrived it was sure better than the stuff that had preceded it. It greatly improved the quality of taxi cabs.
I hear all kinds of nice things about Germany and clean energy.
Canada… They have the tar sands and are more than happy to blacken the sky and poison the ground in exchange for American money. The only reason Canadians have yet to cut down every tree and mine every mountain into dust is the low population density, which leads to the shortage of qualified forklift operators.
If the number of people went up, they’d be sure to burn everything down.
@5
When the Pony arrived it was sure better than the stuff that had preceded it.
You mean ox carts?
My goodness…
The Pony Coupe version is a dead ringer for the DeLorean
http://www.carspyshots.net/showthread.php?t=1635
Vs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Lorean_DMC-12
Nice Reuter’s article on the Pony, dated Jan. 2008.
http://www.reuters.com/article.....nnel=10003
“Canada… They have the tar sands and are more than happy to blacken the sky and poison the ground in exchange for American money.”
And pollute the water and kill all the bunnies, right? Not defending the pollution/ecological damage that comes with refining the tar sands, but I don’t think it defines the whole country.
American money does have a role in our economy. As neighbors, friends, and allies, we happen to be one another’s largest trading partners. You make it sound so sinister. Would you prefer export our resources to somebody else?
Funny how once I leave Korea and am in Canada for a couple of days that I stop clearing my throat/hacking stuff up. The smell of flowers and grass (sometimes both kinds) everywhere. And I can see stars at night and drink water straight from the tap/faucet. Wildlife all over the place.
Wow. And this for a car that probably cost about 1/10th that when it rolled out back in 1975 or so. I suppose the moral of the story here is to travel to industrializing third-world countries and buy their cars, no matter how crappy they may be, then wait 30 years. Could be a good alternative to an IRA.
I’m gonna buy a Tata, a Chery and a Great Wall Motors mini-car and just keep them for a while… so collectors will give me big $$$ later!
They sold well, particularly in Canada, because they were so frickin cheap.
I liked the Scoupe better.
Interesting points #10.
“Yes, it had emission standards that didn’t allow it to be sold in the states (but it was one of the best selling models in Canada), its innards rusted prematurely, its heater core froze in cold winters, shock absorbers were non-existant, it burned oil, etc.”
I didn’t know many people who owned a Pony. I’m guessing it was more popular in other provinces than mine. But, you’re right, it had a terrible reputation. It simply wasn’t designed for Canadian winters. The weather is relatively mild in Korea, roads aren’t icy and therefore rarely salted.
In any case, Hyundai opened a factory in Bromont, Quebec in 1989. It was shut after 3 years. The cars it produced had engine problems and would rust too quickly.
PS. Hyundai began selling cars in Canada in 1985 and in the US in 1986.
The joke in my hometown was that the Pony was a great car, you bought two, and used the second for spare parts. They would rust out due to the salted roads.
#10 You can drink water from the tap in Korea. It’s safe and the Korean government has done a good job making it safe. What they haven’t done a good job at is convincing people it IS safe to drink.
Last I heard, only 2% of Seoul drank water straight from the tap.
I’ll give you not salted, but it ain’t because the roads are not icy. It’s because the government provides almost zippo in useful public services, despite — no, because of — its massive payrolls.
Roads here, especially tertiary roads in residential areas, are icy as hell in winter.
the ponies at the folk museum must be out of the samsung car museum in which i highly recommend to anyone interested in classic cars. they have a shelby cobra that’ll give a grown man goosebumps. interesting collection of old motorcyles as well.
@17 Brendon
No, it’s because the Korean government cares about the environment.
Carr is right. I wondered about that as a kid.
My grandpa had an expensive house in Yeoksam dong, but on a hill. Walk down the hill, and you see all these expensive buildings in Yeoksam dong, and right next door is Seocho.
Roads were always icy on the hill.
This was late 80’s. He moved on to an expensive APT in Seoul. And passed away.
It’s amazing Seoul City still keeps ‘em icy. That’s what 3rd world countries do. And in a 3rd world country, Park Geun Hye would have been made President already, because, after all, she’s the daughter of a former dictator. They do that a lot in South Asia.
i had a nice conversation with my dad. He was the one who made me buy a Hyundai, recently, but he himself wouldn’t buy one, while he was in Korea. He drove a Daewoo LeMan’s, because he thought it was basically a GM car.
another thing is, there are relatively few Japanese in the US, and it’s because they actually like their country, and actually like living there. That was our conclusion. Says volumes about Koreans. To be re-evaluated 20 years later.
Even the flat areas are left covered with ice. I’ve fallen and broken my arm on ice here (and am headed toward arthritis in the joint as a result) in 2001, and ended up flat on my back, stunned, this last February. Both times I was navigating completely flat roads which had several centimeters of slick, compacted (frozen and re-frozen) ice which had lain there untouched by the city for days.
Roads don’t get cleared because the government doesn’t give a crap, and also because the litigation system doesn’t make meaningful awards for that kind of negligence by the property owner or the government.
Complain about the swell fellas all you like, but they made possible the first-world service standards we all appreciate and wish we could have here.
“Roads here, especially tertiary roads in residential areas, are icy as hell in winter.”
Not really. An inch of snow or a thin layer of black ice is no big deal..then again, I know how to drive in the winter and I have the tires on my cars changed whenever the threads are worn out,…which is more than I can say for most drivers on Korean roads.
But, you’re right. The government should spend more money on maintaining the roads in the winter since most Korean drivers (and quite a few American ones, too) obviously don’t know how to drive on snow or ice.
“another thing is, there are relatively few Japanese in the US, and it’s because they actually like their country, and actually like living there. That was our conclusion. Says volumes about Koreans. To be re-evaluated 20 years later.”
It’s more about the economic situation of the nation rather than feelings of attachment. When Japan was poor, many did immigrate. Look at Brazil.
As for Korea, comparing per capita GDP, there’s still a considerable income gap between the U.S., and ultimately that’s the reason behind immigration, isn’t it not?
Y’all need to stock up on burnt out yontan briquettes. Now. When winter rolls in smash ‘em on the ice; they’re quite gritty and will better shred your clothes and skin than just plain old ice.
“As for Korea, comparing per capita GDP, there’s still a considerable income gap between the U.S., and ultimately that’s the reason behind immigration, isn’t it not?”
No, it’s because even if you doubled the personal income here Korea would still suck.
“Korea would still suck.”
Did your pimp steal your passport?
If Pawi were here, he’d ask why you choose to stay in a place where you feel that way about it. Then he’d go ahead and answer his own question and probably say something racist and offensive. But I’m not Pawi, so I’ll just ask it and let you answer.
That Pony will be in the Auto hall of fame someday.
jarrod!
As a tuner of these cars, they have a lot of potential. Because their parts are sourced from Mitsubishi and Ford, it takes a little engineering and creativity to make shit work together. For instance, one of my Pony’s has a 4G63 in there now, soon to be replaced by a 4G64 DOHC unit making ~200 Hp.
Suspension on the other hand… just go for the gold and tune a pre-1987 Stellar: 4 point links out back, double wishbone up front. Can’t go wrong. I did, that’s why I’m largely adopting the Cortina’s (Stellar) suspension in the Pony.
Still, a stout car that will see you through your darkest days without any kind of shit.
Well sometimes. But it always ends up costing $20 and 15 mins to fix anything it throws at you. The 4G32 “Saturn” was an impeccably reliable mill.
If they still made them, I’d be first in line to buy a new example.
Ponys are apparently pretty reliable when it doesn’t have to deal with salt on roads and sub-freezing temps.
Egypt wants antiquated taxis off its roads.