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The AutoGuide News Blog is your source for breaking stories from the auto industry. Delivering news immediately, the AutoGuide Blog is constantly updated with the latest information, photos and video from manufacturers, auto shows, the aftermarket and professional racing.

27/01/2012 | By: Jason Siu

Hyundai and Rhys Millen Racing deserve a round of applause for their recent video antics that spread through the Internet like a leaked photo from a celebrity cell phone.

This time around, the team took their Veloster Rally Car out to the golf course where it replaced the traditional golf cart. Almost everything you can imagine that shouldn’t be combined into a video, is. We’re talking golf clubs, golf balls, a 500-hp Veloster with 600 lb-ft of torque, and cows. Yes, we said cows.

Really there’s no reason behind this video, other than the fact that millions of people will watch it which means millions of eye balls on Hyundai’s little Veloster.

Check out the video after the break.

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15/12/2011 | By: Colum Wood

Rhys Millen drifts through hyundai headquarters

Hyundai Motor America is just about ready to open its new California headquarters and decided a proper send-off for the old building in Fountain Valley was in order. The idea, dreamed-up by Hyundai service tech Dustin Loranger, has pro drifter Rhys Millen stealing his own drift car from the compound, only to run circles (literally) around the facility – both outside and in.

Watch the video after the jump: Continue Reading…

04/11/2011 | By: Jason Siu

 

Despite being confirmed a Photoshop fake by Hyundai themselves to Jalopnik, we’re pretty confident that the production 2013 Hyundai Genesis will look very close to this render. We’ve already seen some spy shots here and here, which gives us reasons to believe that this Photoshop isn’t far off from the real thing.

Nonetheless, if this is what we’re to expect from Hyundai’s 2013 Genesis, it’s obvious that the coupe will be borrowing some styling cues from the Veloster, giving it quite the more aggressive stance. What we still don’t know is what will lie underneath the hood, but after checking out Rhys Millen Racing’s SEMA creation, one can only hope that Hyundai will offer a 5.0L V8 Genesis coupe somewhere in their model lineup.

[Source: Autoblog]

01/11/2011 | By: Colum Wood

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The best part about SEMA is that every now and then an automaker shows something incredible. The worst part is that these cars aren’t even concepts, they’re just marketing hype show cars. Is that the case with the Rhys Millen Racing Tau-V8-powered Hyundai Genesis Coupe? We certainly hope not.

Unveiled today at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, the RM500 Genesis Coupe delivers 450-hp from a 5.0-liter V8 borrowed from the Genesis Sedan R-Spec.

“From the moment I saw the Tau V8 engine in the Genesis R-Spec sedan, I knew it would be a perfect fit for the Genesis Coupe, adding even more performance and power to the dynamic coupe,” said pro racer Rhys Millen, owner, Rhys Millen Racing, which built this impressive show car. “The sleek and practical exterior modifications would allow this Genesis Coupe to look good parked in your driveway or turning laps at the track.”

In addition to the big V8, the RMR500 gets an RMR stainless steel exhaust, GReddy rear muffler and titanium tops, plus an oil cooler and differential cooler. Other upgrades include an RMR carbon fiber front lop, carbon spoiler, carbon rear diffuser and carbon side skirts. Plus, there’s a set of HRE 793-RS 19-inch wheels, Brembo brakes and a suede interior package.

While Hyundai has yet to confirm as much, the 2013 Genesis Coupe is expected to get an upgraded 2.0T with as much as 274-hp, while the V6 will get upgraded to deliver 333-hp. Will a V8 Genesis Coupe ever be offered. We’ll keep hoping and praying.

GALLERY: Hyundai Genesis Coupe RMR500

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Click here for AutoGuide’s complete 2011 SEMA Show coverage

See video of the RMR500 and Hyundai’s Supercharged V6 Genesis after the jump:

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26/10/2011 | By: Jason Siu

We really have to give a hand to Rhys Millen Racing and Hyundai this year. In an age where everything somehow finds a way to leak onto the Internet, this is the first we’re hearing of the project that RMR is currently working on for this year’s SEMA Show.

Hyundai has released a teaser video revealing that Rhys is planning something extra special for this year’s show. Over the past four years, RMR and Hyundai have partnered up to create one-of-a-kind show-stopping vehicles, and it looks like this year they want it to be the biggest and best yet.

Make sure to check out the video after the jump and stay tuned for SEMA Show coverage starting here, Tuesday, Nov. 1st.

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26/05/2011 | By: Jason Siu

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Before there was Rhys Millen tearing up Pikes Peak, there was Rod Millen claiming records capturing the Unlimited crown fives times in 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999. But now that he has successfully handed the motorsports torch to his son Rhys Millen, Rod has taken more of a backseat approach since 2000 from Pikes Peak. Sure he followed in his son’s footsteps trying his hand at drifting a Mazda RX-8 briefly, but it’s been over a decade since we’ve seen Rod Millen at the infamous Hill Climb.

The elder Millen once held the record at Pikes Peak with a time of 10:04.06 which wasn’t broken until 2007 by Nobuhiro Tajima with a 10:01.408. And now it looks like the itch to go racing has overcome Rod Millen and he’ll be making a return to Pikes Peak on June 26th to compete in the Time Attack 2WD class while his son, Rhys Millen, will try to reclaim the record with a 9-minute run in the Unlimited division with his Hyundai RMR PM580.

Rod Millen will be competing in the RMR Hyundai Genesis coupe and this will be his first appearance since 2000. Both Millens are looking to set records in their respective divisions, with Rhys hoping to fulfill his 10-plus year old dream of breaking into the 9 minute category.

[Source: My Life at Speed]

09/02/2011 | By: Colum Wood

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To help promote the new Veloster to the Gen-Y and under crowd, Hyundai has decided to bolster the coupe’s credentials by taking it racing. And in keeping with the car’s demographic, it’s won’t be racing in the more mainstream World Challenge or Grand Am series, but in an arena where the Red Bull-drinking youth of today will actually pay attention – Rallycross.

Presented today at the Chicago Auto Show, the new Veloster rally car has been built by Hyundai motorsports partner Rhys Millen Racing and will be piloted by rally racer and Drift champ Rhys Millen himself in the 2011 U.S. Rallycross Championship and in the increasingly popular X Games.

Build by RMR, the Veloster race car makes 500-hp and 600 lb-ft of torque from a seriously reworked 2.0-liter 4-cylinder. A true rally car in every way, it includes expected items like a full roll cage and custom off-road suspension, plus all the body panels are made of light weight carbon-Kevlar.

Rhys Millen himself will race the car in the 2011 Rallycross series, while a second vehicle will be piloted by both rally champ Marcus Dodd and freestyle motorbike racer Robbie Maddison. A third car will then be built to complete in a 2WD class, more closely representing the car’s factory capabilities.

Prepped and ready to go, Rhys Millen and the Veloster Rallycross car will make their debut March 26 at Irwindale Speedway in Irwindale, Calif.

GALLERY: Hyundai RMR Veloster Rallycross Racer

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For more information, news, articles, and discussion on the Hyundai Veloster, please visit http://www.veloster.org

25/11/2010 | By: Colum Wood

After teasing us a few days ago, the complete Rhys Millen “Climb Attack” video has now been released. Showcasing Millen’s talents, the 750-hp RMR/Red Bull/ Hyundai Genesis Coupe and some impressively windy mountain roads in Brazil, “Climb Attack” is definitely worth your 4 minutes.

The exact location is a mountain road that runs up the side of Serra Do Rio Do Rastro in Santa Catarina, Brazil. The video was shot and the driving performed as part of the Red Bull Xtreme Drift.

See the video after the jump:

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12/10/2010 | By: Derek Kreindler

After a great run at last year’s SEMA show, where the Hyundai Genesis Coupe was at the forefront of most display booths, Hyundai is butressing their previously announced Sonata Turbo with a pimped out Equus, by Hyundai tuner Rhys Millen Racing.

The Equus, Hyundai’s cut-price S-Class competitor, has been fitted with a carbon fiber good, Red Bull Racing inspired paint, and HRE wheels. An RMR designed intake and exhaust kit give the car a 30 horsepower bump, while a big brake kit helps bring the land-yacht to a halt. If all of that wasn’t enough, the interior has been swathed in ostrich leather.

Check out AutoGuide’s complete SEMA Preview page here, which will be updated with live coverage from the 2010 SEMA Show starting November 2nd.

[Source: Hyundai]

14/07/2010 | By: Colum Wood

By now, no doubt you’ve heard that Rhys Millen’s attempt to set a sub 10-minute time and reclaim the world record for his family at the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb was less than successful. Not only did Millen fail to break the 10-second time, but he managed just third place with a distant 11:06.208 run after his purpose built 650-hp Hyundai race car suffered mechanical problems. Worse still, he was bested by Nobuhiro ‘Monster’ Tajima and his race-prepped Suzuki. This was Tajima’s fifth consecutive win, but wasn’t his fastest, with his best attempt back in 2007 at 10:01.41 – which bested Rhys’ father, Rod Millen’s, previous world record of 10:04.06, set back in 1994.

And while it’s no record-setting run, the team at Red Bull Racing made an incredible video out of the event which is sure to get plenty of eyeballs thanks to high production quality and the sheer awesomeness of both the event and the car.

The video documents the attempt and the challenges any team faces trying to conquer the mountain in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Millen himself put it best in a post race interview, commenting that, “Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong today.”

Check out the video after the jump:

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