{"id":100740,"date":"2026-07-27T16:39:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T16:39:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/100740\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T16:39:01","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T16:39:01","slug":"hyundai-ph-changes-drivers-the-manila-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/100740\/","title":{"rendered":"Hyundai PH changes drivers | The Manila Times"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>HYUNDAI Motor Philippines Inc. (HMPH) will have a new president beginning July 27, with Byung Goo Ko taking over the local subsidiary from Jiho Son.<\/p>\n<p>Ko joins HMPH after serving as team leader of Hyundai Motor Co.\u2019s India and Middle East Business Team. He will be responsible for steering the Korean carmaker\u2019s Philippine operations as it continues to expand its dealer network and electrified vehicle lineup.<\/p>\n<p>The management change comes less than two years after Son assumed the presidency of HMPH in October 2024.<\/p>\n<p>During his term, Son oversaw the opening of additional Hyundai dealerships and the continued rollout of the company\u2019s Global Dealership Space Identity program. The program updates the appearance and layout of Hyundai showrooms and service facilities to follow the carmaker\u2019s current global dealership standards.<\/p>\n<p>Son\u2019s tenure also coincided with Hyundai\u2019s broader push into hybrid vehicles in the Philippine market.<\/p>\n<p>Get the latest news<br \/>\n                <br class=\"br-line\"\/><br \/>\n                delivered to your inbox<\/p>\n<p>Sign up for The Manila Times newsletters<\/p>\n<p>            By signing up with an email address, I acknowledge that I have read and agree to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.manilatimes.net\/terms-of-service\" title=\"Terms of Service\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Terms of Service<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.manilatimes.net\/privacy-policy\" title=\"Privacy Policy\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The company added models such as the Kona Hybrid, Elantra Hybrid, and Palisade Hybrid, widening its electrified range beyond the Tucson Hybrid, Santa Fe Hybrid, and the battery electric Ioniq models.<\/p>\n<p>The expanded selection reflects Hyundai\u2019s effort to offer different levels of electrification as Philippine motorists gradually move away from vehicles powered solely by conventional gasoline or diesel engines.<\/p>\n<p>Hybrids have become particularly important in the local market because they can reduce fuel consumption without requiring owners to regularly connect their vehicles to a charger. They also give manufacturers an electrified option for buyers who may not yet have access to home or public charging facilities.<\/p>\n<p>Ko takes over as competition intensifies not only among established Japanese and Korean manufacturers, but also from a growing number of Chinese brands offering hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and fully electric vehicles at aggressive prices.<\/p>\n<p>His previous experience handling Hyundai\u2019s business in India and the Middle East could prove relevant to the Philippines, where affordability, durability, and the ability to respond to different road and market conditions remain important considerations.<\/p>\n<p>Among the challenges facing the new president will be sustaining Hyundai\u2019s dealer expansion, strengthening after-sales support, and maintaining the competitiveness of the company\u2019s vehicle range.<\/p>\n<p>Ko will also have to guide Hyundai through a local market in which buyers are increasingly comparing vehicles based on technology, fuel economy, warranty coverage, and overall value rather than relying on brand familiarity alone.<\/p>\n<p>Son, meanwhile, leaves HMPH after overseeing a period of dealership development and product expansion. Hyundai credited him with improving the company\u2019s retail network and introducing additional hybrid models during his term.<\/p>\n<p>The appointment of Ko marks another leadership transition for HMPH, which became Hyundai Motor Co.\u2019s official Philippine sales subsidiary in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>With the local lineup now covering gasoline, diesel, hybrid, and fully electric vehicles, the new president inherits a broader product portfolio \u2014 and a Philippine automotive market that has become more crowded and competitive.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HYUNDAI Motor Philippines Inc. (HMPH) will have a new president beginning July 27, with Byung Goo Ko taking&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":100741,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[52263,52250,52260,36217,19937,4538,52252,52258,7244,52262,52253,708,295,23795,702,12626,52254,52257,52259,52251,52256,27480,40569,52255,52266,52261,39249,1013,19546,52264,52265],"class_list":["post-100740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-hyundai-motor","tag-after-sales-support","tag-byung-goo-ko","tag-chinese-brands","tag-durability","tag-elantra-hybrid","tag-electrification","tag-electrified-vehicle-lineup","tag-fuel-consumption","tag-fuel-economy","tag-fully-electric-vehicles","tag-global-dealership-space-identity","tag-hybrid-vehicles","tag-hyundai","tag-hyundai-dealerships","tag-hyundai-motor","tag-hyundai-motor-philippines","tag-hyundai-showrooms","tag-ioniq-models","tag-japanese-manufacturers","tag-jiho-son","tag-kona-hybrid","tag-korean-manufacturers","tag-palisade-hybrid","tag-philippine-market","tag-philippines-automotive-market","tag-plug-in-hybrids","tag-santa-fe-hybrid","tag-technology","tag-tucson-hybrid","tag-vehicle-range","tag-warranty-coverage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100740"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100740\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}