Hyundai Curb Concept vehicle
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Hyundai
11th January, 2011
Hyundai California Design Centre and Hyundai Motor America
are presenting the world debut of the Hyundai Curb Concept vehicle at the Detroit Motor Show. Curb is a
compact Urban Activity Vehicle (UAV) for the next generation of Hyundai buyers. Curb is also a test bed for
future Hyundai Blue Link™ and vehicle connectivity technology for the U.S. market.
Highlights for Curb Concept
- Compact CUV for Generation-Y living an urban lifestyle with an active night
life
- ‘Hi-Tech Rugged’ design – high-tech interior, rugged exterior
- Advanced Hyundai Blue Link and vehicle connectivity technology
- Via touch sensors and screens
- Continental 30.5 cm display
- Continental Reflective Heads Up Display (HUD)
- Big cargo-hauling capability
- Pop-up roof rack and pull-out bike rack
- 1.6-litre “Gamma” powertrain
- Curb is the twelfth signature concept vehicle (HCD-12) to be designed at the company’s California Design
Centre in Irvine, California.
Potholes and urban venues
The inspiration for Curb came from the need to evolve Hyundai’s “Fluidic Sculpture” design language for
younger buyers. Hyundai designers wanted to make a vehicle loaded with technology that was at home in an
urban environment with potholes and densely packed entertainment venues on the streets (such as cinema, cafe
and restaurant strips). The vehicle needed to secure the advanced Blue Link and connectivity features
against impact and shock. From these ideas, the ‘technology rugged’ design direction for Curb was formed.
“We wanted the Curb to be urban tough without looking like a Brink's truck,” said Jason Brown,
Hyundai designer. “City driving was going to be its forte, not crossing the Rubicon trail, but we wanted
it to have urban armour for daily driving on city streets. It needed to empower its passengers in this
setting.”
Exterior design
The Curb’s design starts with the glass that spills onto the bonnet and wraps around the cowl, covering
the A-pillars. This look resembles the face shield of a sport bike motorcycle helmet. Beneath the glass are
structural trusses with the glass panels applied like a shield.
“The truss frame structure going up the pillars helps increase greater visibility in dense urban
environments,” said John Krsteski, Curb design manager. The striking profile is dominated by a boomerang
trajectory body side line. This dominant line brings the entire design together and reinforces the feeling
of strength with its positive and negative shapes.
Thin, sleek head lamps and tail lamps dive into the vehicle, making the illusion they are connected into
the engine compartment or interior. To complete the ‘technology rugged’ look, designers added 22-inch five
spoke wheels and Michelin tyres with a custom saffron coloured tread pattern to match the interior. These
wheels have spokes set into the tyres to make them have a more pronounced profile. To enter the Curb, one
simply drags their finger across a touch pad to open the doors.
The exhaust vents serve a dual purpose. They pop out to reveal a bike rack so the owner could park and
ride a “Fixie” (fixed gear) bicycle to the rest of his/her destination as an alternative transportation
source. The roof also features pop-up roof rack towers, demonstrating the perfect blend of being rugged,
yet high-tech. Curb has a lighted clam shell rear hatch, also opened via a touchpad for loading gear and a
third rear access door for easy passenger ingress and egress.
At start-up, the Curb’s numerous LED lights illuminate sequentially, starting with the outside rows and
the Curb’s badging illuminates through the paint. Shmaze Custom Coatings developed the One-Way paint finish
allowing the Curb name to illuminate through the paint.
Empowered connectivity
Connectivity is the theme for the interior, which is why information flows seamlessly from outside to
inside of the Curb.
“The goal was to make sure passengers felt connected to each other and the urban environment around
them,” said Bradley Arnold, Curb interior designer. “We wanted to empower the passengers with
information and make them feel that the exterior was connected to the interior.”
A large acrylic screen with multiple zones allows information to be passed between passengers all via a
touch screen that appears endless. It flows like a river, from the gauge cluster to the centre stack
controls, across the instrument panel and all the way into back seat. The steering wheel itself is an
opaque surface with a monitor showing through. There are also monitors in the back of the head restraints.
A Heads Up Display (HUD) provided by Continental, with navigation, keeps the drivers eyes on the road,
while passengers search for their favourite channel on Pandora. Drivers are able to navigate their music
via a 3-D carousel of album cover art as well as view the related cover art for a currently playing track.
Cameras replace the side mirrors and are linked to the HUD. The screen can also display vehicle diagnostics,
download apps and act as a video phone, all with a single touch sensor control strip provided by Methode.
To bring the outside look inside, the Curb designers had the rocker panels flow into the interior of the
vehicle to provide a seamless design. The Hyundai Curb links its interior and exterior designs together by
having the rocker panels viewable from the exterior flow into the interior. The three-holed open truss
structured A-pillars enhance the driver’s cornering visibility, structurally support the roof, and are
made from a single milled piece. This metal structure connects everything together.
Saffron accents inside match the ones on the tyres. The saffron accents gradient across the seats, which
are made of super-stretch, fast-drying board short material. Thin seats have been visible in concept cars
for decades. Now there are materials, like those found in running shoes, making seats like these possible.
The Curb features Air Bladder seats from Finn Tech that are less than five centimetres thick. These thin
seats maximise interior space while supplying surprising comfort. The rear bench seat also has forward
and aft movement.
When it comes to storage capacity, he Hyundai Curb has rear head restraints mounted to its robust frame,
rather than to the seats. These head 'rests' swivel up into the roof, allowing the rear seats to fold
flat.
Hyundai Blue Link technology
Generation-Y drivers want to stay connected at all times. Inside the Curb, a driver could be listening
to their favourite station on Pandora, cruising the city and get a phone call from a friend. Using Blue
Link, the caller’s location shows up as a Point-of-Interest (POI). The friend tells the driver he/she just
discovered a great 'thing' happening at invites him/her to come on over. The location then becomes the
destination for the turn-by-turn directions.
- The Blue Link Location Sharing feature will send Curb’s location to select members of social
networking sites. The process starts by adding friend’s e-mail addresses to the Blue Link Location Sharing
website. The driver can then let his or her friends know they are in route by sending a Location Sharing
message from inside Curb. If a friend has accepted the owner’s invitation to Location Sharing then that
location will show up as a point of interest on the navigation screen.
Blue Link features incorporated into Curb Concept
Blue Link Assurance
- Automatic Crash Notification and Assistance
- SOS Emergency Assistance
- Enhanced Roadside Assistance
Blue Link Essentials
Remote Access:
- Remote Door Unlock/Lock
- Remote Horn & Lights
- Panic Notification
- Remote Vehicle Start
Convenience:
- Alarm Notification
- Quick Tips
- Location Sharing
- Voice Text Messaging
Vehicle Self Diagnostics:
- Automated Diagnostic Trouble Code Notification
- Maintenance Alert
- Monthly Vehicle Report
- Recall Advisor
- Web Vehicle Diagnostics
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Theft Protection:
- Stolen Vehicle Recovery
- Stolen Vehicle Slowdown
- Vehicle Immobilisation
Safeguard:
- Valet Alert
- Geofence
- Speed Alert
- Curfew
Blue Link Guidance
- Turn-by-Turn Navigation
- POI Search by advanced voice recognition system
- POI Web search & download
- Daily Route Guidance with Traffic Condition
- Traffic
- Service station locations & petrol prices
- Eco-Coach
- Restaurant ratings
- Weather
1.6-litre Gamma powertrain
The Hyundai Curb is powered by a turbocharged 1.6-litre Petrol Direct Injection (GDI)
four-cylinder engine matched to Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG). This powertrain develops
130.5 kW of power and 229 Nm of torque. By adding Idle Stop and Go (ISG) technology, the
Curb would deliver 7.8-litres per 100 km in the city and 5.9-litres per 100 km on the
highway.
SPECIFICATIONS
Configuration |
Compact Crossover Utility Vehicle (CUV) |
|
Engine |
Turbocharged 1.6-litre GDI four-cylinder engine with ISG |
|
Transmission |
DSG |
|
Power |
130.5 kW (estimated) |
|
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|
Weight |
1,270 kg. |
|
|
|
Wheelbase |
2.6 m |
|
Overall length |
4.2 m |
|
Overall width |
1.8 m |
|
Overall height |
1.6 m |
|
Wheels |
22.5 inch |
|
Tyres |
Michelin |
|
Fuel economy |
7.8-litres per 100 kms city and 5.9-litres per 100 kms highway (estimated) |
|
30.5cm display |
Continental |
|
HUD |
Continental Reflective Technology |
|
Operating system |
Continental AutoLinq |
|
Touch sensors |
Provided Methode Electronics TouchSense® technology |
|
Illuminated Curb logo via One-Way paint |
Shmaze Custom Coatings |
|
Seats |
Air Bladder by Finn Tech |
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