Hyundai has delivered the half-millionth new car it has sold in Australia and given another away with it.

When Gold Coast couple Wayne and Joanne Hughes recently collected their new Hyundai Accent at Gold Coast Hyundai in Southport, they also drove away a new Terracan V6 4WD wagon which Hyundai gave the couple as a surprise gift for being their half millionth new car customer !

Wayne and Joanne originally ordered the Accent but Hyundai recently surprised the couple with the opportunity to either substitute or add any other Hyundai model in the range free of charge.

With four children, the Hughes chose the seven seat Terracan V6 4WD wagon, valued at $35,000, commenting it was the ideal vehicle for his family’s outdoor lifestyle but they decided to still buy the Accent as a second car.

There are now three Hyundais in the Hughes household as their eldest daughter takes over the family’s ever-reliable, much-loved Excel.

Milestone
According to Hyundai Motor Australia CEO Mr B G Lee, reaching the half million sales mark is an important milestone in just 18 years here and underlines its success in the Australian market where, this year, it has moved up to be the fifth most popular passenger car brand from sixth last year and sales are up 58 percent year-to-date over 2003. “Hyundai has grown to be a household name here in stylish, value-for-money cars and more lately, lifestyle vehicles as well. Strong sales across our entire range reflect that consumers are seeing Hyundai as a quality mainstream brand, as evidenced by its long time offering the industry’s best new car warranty, five years or 130,000 km,” said Mr Lee.

In 2003, Hyundai sold nearly 31,000 cars, its best selling models being Getz on 11,141 units, Elantra 10,628 units, followed by Accent and Santa Fe.