Hyundai has announced the establishment of a new division conceived to “enhance its high-performance vehicle and motorsport businesses”, luring Thomas Schemera from BMW lead the new unit.
Officially called the “High Performance Vehicle & Motorsport Division”, the Korean automaker says the new unit will streamline its strategy, product planning, sales and marketing capabilities for high-performance vehicle operations, and further develop the high-performance vehicle business.
“I am thrilled to join Hyundai Motor, which is presenting incredible prowess in its high-performance technologies through models like the i30 N, despite being relatively new to this competitive scene.” Schemera (pictured below) said.
“I will dedicate my expertise and knowledge obtained over my three-decade career to making a significant contribution to Hyundai’s development in this field and to provide pure driving pleasure to our customers,” the 55-year-old added, coming awfully close to repeating BMW’s “sheer driving pleasure” tagline.
Schemera, who studied mechanical engineering, began his career as a designing engineer at BMW in 1987. He played various key roles at BMW Group, including a four-year service as the vice president of sales & dealer development in the mainland and greater China region. More recently, he served as the head of BMW M and BMW Individual in the Americas.
“Thomas Schemera is one of the most renowned experts in the high-performance vehicle business with experience in all of the world’s major markets,” said Albert Biermann, president and head of performance development and high-performance vehicle development at the wider Hyundai Motor Group.
“I am excited he is joining us and I’m confident that his participation will help put Hyundai’s high-performance vehicle business onto the fast track,” added Biermann, who joined the business in 2015 after previously heading up BMW M.
In 2017, Hyundai launched its high-performance N line-up with the i30 N model, followed by the Veloster N at the start of 2018.
