Self-assembly cars that can be built at home using a few basic tools and bruised knuckles are usually the preserve of specialist sports car makers such as Caterham, Westfield and Ultima. The news that the South Korean motoring giant Hyundai has now joined this merry band of D.I.Y. vehicle makers may therefore come as a something of a shock, yet this is not an April Fool’s Day joke, it is actually true!
No, the Hyundai Soapbox cannot enter the Settrington Cup
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To elaborate, this surprising news doesn’t mean that you will now be able to build your own brand new Hyundai i20, Kona or Tucson in the garage at home, but rather, you will be able to assemble Hyundai’s latest zero-emission vehicle, possibly on the kitchen table.
This new eco-friendly Hyundai measures just 1-metre (3.2-feet) in length and primarily uses wood, metal rods and connecting materials such as brackets and screws in its construction, with its wheels being sourced from a wheelbarrow, rather than costly diamond-cut alloys from Ronal or Enkei!
The latest Hyundai also dispenses with an airbag, ABS brakes and cupholders, with its steering controlled through a joystick and its climate control via the natural elements. Thoughtfully designed by the German-based Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Centre engineers, the automotive brand’s first self-assembly vehicle has been created it give its locked-in and stay-at-home customers, families and friends an affordable and fun mode of transport, using materials commonly found in the garden shed or local D.I.Y. store.
This latest Hyundai model is inspired by the brand’s recent 45 EV Concept car, and is called Soapbox. It has been designed to carry adults, as well as children, so it could be just the thing for a downhill gravity race, in the style of the pioneering Soapbox Challenge that used to feature as a popular element of the Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard.
Give it a go. But remember, the Hyundai Soapbox is not eligible for the Settrington Cup.
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