One Hyundai executive says the company is ‘agonizing’ over potentially working on the Apple Car

Word on the street is that Apple is trying to team up with an automobile company, one that’s already entrenched in the market, to help build its oft-rumored Apple Car. One such company appears to be Hyundai, but a new report suggests at least one executive isn’t too keen on the idea.

Reuters has a look at the potential partnership between Hyundai and Apple. Right from the start, things seem to be on a rocky footing. Actually, one unnamed Hyundai goes as far as to say the company’s heads are “agonizing” over the decision. However, it’s interesting that one of the major focal points for the company at this point is becoming a manufacturer for another company:

We are agonizing over how to do it, whether it is good to do it or not,” said a Hyundai executive aware of the internal discussions on the tie-up with Apple. “We are not a company which manufactures cars for others. It is not like working with Apple would always produce great results.

These conversations have been going on for quite some time, according to this latest report. Back in 2018, in fact. However, Hyundai is balking at the idea of building a car for another company. And that might go as far as replacing some of the executives at the company if an agreement with Apple was reached. This would be to avoid any kind of “culture clash” at the South Korean company.

The person quoted in the piece also notes that it’s two companies trying to work together who consider themselves the “boss”. They note that Apple handles all of its own work, including marketing and everything tied to the brand. Hyundai does the same for its automobiles. The person said, “That does not really work”.

The goal here is to reach an agreement with a company that can handle the final assembly. Apple is rumored to be following a similar pattern with its other products, as far as manufacturing is concerned. That means the company is trying to source its own design, from the body, the frame, and other parts, but rely on a company like Hyundai (or Kia, a group affiliate with Hyundai) to handle the final assembly.

And while discussions between the two companies have apparently been going on for years now, the first reports of the potential deal surfaced earlier this month. Right now, the latest rumor suggested the Apple Car, being developed by the Project Titan team, may still be at least five years away from making its debut.

Some executives of other automobile companies are excited about the potential competition, some folks think there’s an inherent problem in Apple’s (rumored) plan to build an automobile.

How do you feel about the potential Apple Car?