Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Capital to introduce CarShare service next month

Hyundai Motor Co. and Hyundai Capital Services Inc. will jointly launch a car sharing service next month, allowing people to rent and pick up a car for a short-distance ride in Seoul and around the capital. An unnamed Hyundai Capital official said on Sunday the car sharing service ‘Deal Car’ is in the final stage of launching the service.. The Hyundai-owned car sharing service is similar to startup competitors like Socar and Green Car. But the service by the conglomerate is different from smaller peers as it includes a car delivery option for users. Once a user selects a car type, driving time and a pick-up point on a smartphone app, Hyundai Capital, the app operator, allocates a car rental agency near the user for delivery. Socar and Green users have to visit a carport to pick up their car.

Another hallmark of Deal Car is its fleet of electric vehicles. The number of EVs to be added to the car pool remains undecided, but the company is aiming to expand the service around eco-friendly cars, according to the official. The service will also be stretched to every major city across the nation after services in Seoul and its surrounding areas. Hyundai Motor’s new venture underscores the proliferation of the sharing economy in Korea in recent years. No big profits are expected from the service but Hyundai Motor will be able to analyze users’ data to better understand consumer driving patterns to develop future marketing strategies.