Hyundai Cars

Hyundai SA has introduced a water purification and recycling project to curtail water consumption at its Bryanston dealership in Johannesburg, which it says will reduce municipal water usage by more than 80%.

Earlier this year the Engineering Council of SA said the maximum consumption level SA’s water resources could sustain would be reached in about five years, and that industry accounted for only 10% of water consumed but caused sizable damage to the environment, including rivers.

Last week, conservation organisation World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) released a report – Managing Water Risk – in which it warned that business in SA would face great operational challenges if it did not implement water conservation solutions.

Hyundai said the project was a large investment in the reduction of water pollution and waste. Should the initiative prove successful, it would introduce it at 45 dealerships countrywide.

“It’s a two-pronged approach,” said Kosta Avgoustinos, dealer principal in Bryanston. “The one component is to capture rainwater, which we use to supplement our water system. And the second prong is to filter and recycle all our (car) wash bay water by purifying it, removing the soap and mixing it back in with the rain water.”

Bryanston was notorious for water cuts, Mr Avgoustinos said, and the water infrastructure in the area was being upgraded, which was one of the reasons for the development of the project. He said the average municipal water bill was R5000 a month.

“The primary reason was environmental (awareness), but we also wanted to improve our operations in terms of having a constant water supply.”

Mao Amis of the WWF said competition for water would increase in the future and that a water shortage would hurt business’s bottom line.

“The risk that companies face in the future is that government might decide to survey water challenges,” Dr Amis said.

The custom-developed system cost Hyundai R200000, with running costs at more than R5 000 a month, but Mr Avgoustinos said in the long term it would save money.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (8-4) vs. Utah Utes (7-5)

Dec. 31, 2 p.m. ET (CBS)

Georgia Tech take by ACC blogger Heather Dinich: Georgia Tech, which has the nation’s No. 3 rushing offense, will face the No. 7 rushing defense when it plays Utah in the Hyundai Sun Bowl. It will be Georgia Tech’s 15th consecutive bowl appearance, but the first time in the Sun Bowl since beating Texas Tech there in 1970. Despite its consistent appearances in the postseason, Georgia Tech hasn’t fared well recently, and will be trying to snap a string of six straight bowl losses. Georgia Tech got off to a surprising 6-0 start, but faltered down the stretch and enters the bowl game having lost four of its past six games, including a 31-17 loss to rival Georgia. With only 10 scholarship seniors on the roster, it’s a young team, but the Jackets still lead the ACC in rushing offense (316.8 yards per game), total offense (459.6) and scoring offense (34.9). Georgia Tech’s biggest problems offensively have come when its trailing and is forced to throw the ball more than it would like. Defensively, Georgia Tech has been average at best in the second season under coordinator Al Groh. The Jackets are allowing 25.75 points per game, but Utah has struggled offensively and ranks No. 110 in the country in total offense.

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Utah take by Pac-12 blogger Ted Miller: Utah had two seasons and a yeesh in its first year of Pac-12 play. Actually, you could make that three seasons if you wanted to, considering the Utes joined California, Stanford and USC as the only conference teams to be perfect in nonconference play. Utah started its conference slate, however, 0-4, and there was a wee bit of crowing from the old guard Pac-10 about the Utes being in over their heads, no matter that starting quarterback Jordan Wynn was lost for the season with a shoulder injury in the Game 4 against Washington. But after getting crunched at California, Utah righted itself and reeled off four consecutive wins. Suddenly, the Utes were in the middle of the South Division race.

What made the difference was stout defense, great production from running back John White and steady if unspectacular play from quarterback Jon Hays. It became clear that if Utah didn’t make a bunch of turnovers, it had a chance against anybody. As it turned out, all Utah needed to do on the final weekend of the regular season was beat lowly Colorado. UCLA and Arizona State would both lose their final games, which was how the Utes would ascend into the top spot. This, as you know, became the “yeesh.” Colorado ended a 24-game road losing streak with a 17-14 win.

Still, the Utes made it clear they can complete. Now they are headed to a bowl that’s one rung better in the Pac-12 pecking order than the destination for the Mountain West Conference champ, the Las Vegas Bowl.

South Korean shipbuilding stocks may
jump as much as 80 percent in four months as they catch up with
gains in oil prices, according to Mirae Asset Securities Co., an
affiliate of the nation’s second-largest money manager.

The Korea KRX Shipbuilding Index (KRXSHIP), which tracks Hyundai
Heavy Industries Co., Samsung Heavy Industries Co. and eight
other shipbuilding stocks, may rebound as rising oil prices spur
demand for drill ships and liquefied natural gas tankers, said
Lee Sokje, a Seoul-based Mirae analyst. The index has tumbled 42
percent since reaching the highest this year on May 2.

“Looking at how oil prices are doing, it’s only a matter
of time before shipyard shares follow,” Lee said by phone on
Dec. 2. “This is a very good opportunity to buy.”

Brent crude, the benchmark used to price two-thirds of
global oil supplies, has jumped about 9.8 percent since Oct. 4
because of easing economic concerns and political tensions in
Iran. The price may jump to $127.50 a barrel at the end of next
year as the global economy avoids recession, Goldman Sachs Group
Inc. said in a Dec. 1 report. It traded at $109.6 Dec. 2.

The Bloomberg World Shipbuilding Index (BWSHIP) has fallen about 32
percent this year as orders for vessels to carry containers,
commodities and oil have tumbled amid the European debt crisis
and a slump in freight rates caused by overcapacity.

Hyundai Heavy

This slowdown may affect Korean shipyards less than those
in China as shipbuilders including Hyundai Heavy, Samsung Heavy
and Daewoo Shipbuilding Marine Engineering Co. (042660), South Korea’s
three largest, have pared their reliance on these traditional
markets by focusing more on energy-related products. South
Korean yards may win more sales from energy products than ships
for the first time next year, according to NH Investment
Securities Co.

South Korean shipyards have built 88 percent of drill ships
ordered since 2000 and 77 percent of LNG tankers since 2006,
according to Mirae Asset’s Lee. Hyundai Heavy, based in Ulsan,
South Korea, has won a record 11 drill-ships orders this year.
The vessels are used to bore test wells.

Mirae’s Lee has ‘buy’ ratings on all six of the shipyards
he covers, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. He expects
Hyundai Heavy to rise to 540,000 won within 12 months. That’s
almost double the 289,000 won last closing price.

The shipyard (009540) is rated ‘buy’ by 37 analysts, with two
‘holds’ and two ‘sells,’ according to Bloomberg data.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Kyunghee Park in Singapore at
kpark3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Neil Denslow at
ndenslow@bloomberg.net

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CAIRO (Reuters) – Amr Moussa, a front-runner for Egypt’s presidency, said on Sunday the strong Islamist showing in the first parliamentary election since army generals replaced Hosni Mubarak in February had to be swallowed as democracy in action. The Muslim Brotherhood has also urged its rivals to “accept the will of the …

While its designers were inspired by the industry’s best cars, they ended up with a style as flavorless as dissolved fiber powder. If you were renting a luxury car, the Generic — sorry, Genesis — would be the “Or Similar.”

Click photo for larger version.

Then again, no one knows how much fun you’re having in a Genesis, including the insurance companies. As everyone ignores my silver test car, I’m exiting the parking lot with some enormous twist. The traction control is fighting 429 horsepower, and after a little wiggle, the R-Spec points straight, fires off a few gears, and flat-out goes.

Most midsize luxury cars require at least 60 grand to pull that kind of stunt. But this rear-drive, V-8-powered Hyundai — let’s repeat that again, a Korean-built Hyundai — is out the door fully loaded for $47,000. That includes the 8-speed automatic, slice-and-dice steering, gobs of grip, and potent brakes. Driving the Genesis feels like stealing groceries in the self-checkout lane. Have we bagged an AMG and rang up the V-6 instead?

Yes, in the buttery-smooth shifts, soft leather, hushed road noise, the V-8′s near-silent idle, and long list of interior amenities. Sure, the bowed center stack is copied from the S-Class, but the infotainment controls, a blend of Audi and BMW, are remarkably easy to work. Xenon headlamps, power everything (including the folding mirrors and tilt/telescoping wheel), heads up display, radar cruise control, heated rear seats, HD radio, and keyless start are standard. There’s no dancing around $3,000 “premium” packages on the R-Spec — it’s all here.

Click photo for larger version.

Most of it, anyway. The cooled seat goes to the driver and not the front passenger, and not all of the materials — the rougher plastic lining the center console, the cheap-looking steering wheel, and ultra-bright LED dome lamps — are worthy. The seats are better than most Hyundais — which is to say, they’re not completely flat and unsupportive — but you won’t be snug around corners, nor will you tolerate sitting here for hours.

Despite its quick and generally agreeable behavior, the transmission has a notable omission: There’s no sport mode or paddle shifters. I’m aware this is a sleeper sedan, but can’t the gearbox stay awake for a few seconds? Instead of holding the engine within its peak torque range, near the 5,000-rpm mark, the R-Spec would rather upshift and waft along in sixth or seventh. Shifting through eight speeds with the gear selector is a slow chore you’ll try once, and then give up. I’m not expecting Mercedes-style telepathy, where the car always picks the right gear before you even ask. We’re talking about a basic software upgrade that’ll make this sweet engine sing to high heaven.

The other downgrade, besides the kooky startup and shutdown chimes, is the tough ride from the hunkered suspension. This Hyundai is more like a Porsche Boxster than a refined luxury sedan, and not for the better. While rewarding on well-paved roads, the R-Spec shakes uncomfortably over mild to roughly-patched surfaces. Expect some kickback from the steering column over larger ruts, too. The base Jaguar XF, at a few thousand more, strikes a superior balance between ride comfort and handling agility. All of the European sedans win here.

For the time being, they’ll keep winning. Luxury buyers will choose loaded 3 Series and A4s and see the larger, faster Genesis R-Spec as a trade down. It’s an impressive horse with no name.

Hyundai’s class-leading warranty and value-for-dollar can catch on — Lexus proves it — but they’ll need several more generations of great cars to be noticed above the $40,000 fold. Put a confident face on the Genesis, and you’ll see this sleeper truly come alive.