How Hyundai Became a Design Powerhouse | Bradley Arnold, Head of Design
About this episode
Bradley Arnold, Head of Design at Hyundai Design North America, shares his journey from Art Center to leading design projects at Hyundai. He discusses Hyundai's rapid evolution into a design powerhouse, focusing on the rise of their off-road lifestyle sub-brand XRT and the innovative Crater concept. Arnold highlights Hyundai's nimble culture, blending Korean and American design influences, and their approach to creating authentic, capable off-road vehicles without legacy constraints. The episode also explores Hyundai's design philosophy, the importance of steel, and how they aim to build credibility in the rugged vehicle segment while maintaining fun and innovation.
In this episode of The InEVitable Podcast by MotorTrend, the hosts sit down with Bradley Arnold, Head of Design at Hyundai Design North America. Bradley shares his journey from growing up around motorcycles to becoming one of the key designers shaping Hyundai’s bold new design language. The conversation dives into Hyundai’s rapid rise in the automotive world, how the brand approaches design and innovation, and what it takes to create vehicles that stand out in today’s competitive market. They also explore the growing importance of off-road vehicles, lifestyle design, EV platforms, and Hyundai’s future strategy, including how designers balance brand identity, engineering constraints, and customer expectations. If you're interested in automotive design, the future of Hyundai, EVs, or how modern cars are created, this episode offers a fascinating look inside the process. Topics include:
- Bradley Arnold’s career and design background
- Hyundai’s evolution and brand transformation
- The rise of off-road vehicles and lifestyle design
- EV platforms and future vehicle architecture
- How car design teams actually work
- What’s next for Hyundai and the automotive industry
Nissan Xtrail
"everything from Toyota, TRD, Nissan's trying to make Nismo into their off-road brand, Honda has done a bunch of, what do they call it, is it X-Trail or? Yeah, X-Trail. But more importantly, look at Jeep and the Ford Bronco and all the Ford Raptor"
Ford Bronco
".... But more importantly, look at Jeep and the Ford Bronco and all the Ford Raptor everything, GM with thei..."
Ford Raptor
"...tly, look at Jeep and the Ford Bronco and all the Ford Raptor everything, GM with their ZR2 stuff or AT4, thes..."
Honda Accord
".... Oh, really? Yeah. So he was driving in a Honda Accord every day to Torrance. Now, I'm looking at your ..."
Hyundai Genesis
"...So Ian Cardiobiano, John Krzyski, the head of the Genesis studio. Ian's at Toyota, yeah."
Volkswagen Passat
"...k it up. And then I think I had a proposal for a Passat. We were doing Passats and that studio at that t..."
Hyundai Sonata
"...And Hyundai in 2008 was, was cool, right? The YF Sonata was really expressive. Right."
Toyota Camry
"Right. And stood out from the accord and the Camry at that time. So, I just felt like, well, this i..."
Hyundai Veloster
"You did work on there. Veloster. First thing was, no, I got to do the launch of ..."
Ford Mustang
"We put on the cover. I think we put Mustang killer. Yeah."
Chevrolet Camaro
"Yeah. He had already done Camaro. Yes."
Buick Grand National
"... it become a Buick? Like they're going to do the Grand National or something? I can't remember."
Hyundai Equus
"Right, yeah, Hyundai Genesis. And the Hyundai Equus, don't forget the Equus. Yes, that's right."
Genesis GV80
"...he first thing I worked on when I came back was a GV80 concept. So the first SUV."
Hyundai Santa Cruz
"..., old people would like to garden, you know, the Santa Cruz get soil into it. Yeah. The Santa Cruz is the ex..."
Hyundai Palisade
"Um, so, so, okay. The GV80 and then was Palisade the next big thing you did? No, Santa Cruz."
Ford Maverick
"... not going to, like, I think about like the Ford Maverick, which is based on the Ford Escape, right?"
Ford Escape
"...ike the Ford Maverick, which is based on the Ford Escape, right?"
Chevrolet El Camino
"It's an agile. You know, we're a weird El Camino type thing. But like, was there like, we don't w..."
Chevrolet Spin
"...d you can walk up the desert and walk up and like spin them and see them in motion."
Hyundai Kona
"Sure. Sometimes it's not necessary on a Kona. You don't maybe don't need to do a ton of capab..."
Hyundai Ioniq
"from performance brands. But Ioniq 5N set a new precedent for like how we'll do this..."
Hyundai Ioniq 5
"...it's a little, it looks like to me, it's maybe an Ioniq 5 base, but it's a jacked up off-road EV."
Delorean DMC-12
"...n doing this, I'm blanking on the name, but that DeLorean looking thing. 74."
Genesis G80
"...dai designer, did a bunch of the Genesis, did the G80, all blank on all that. But I've done a ton of c..."
Toyota Land Cruiser
"... really hard on some of these like Toyota and the Land Cruiser. They have this credibility."
Toyota Crown
"...he first two cars sold in the US. One's a Toyota Crown, the other's a Land Cruiser. Crown's burned up o..."
G-Class Gwagon
"But yeah, if a Jeep didn't have two solid axles, like literal revolt. And the G-Wagon, which arguably might be better with two solid axles, they got rid of one sales one way up."
Bronco Raptor
"But you know what? I've driven the Bronco Raptor on chocolate thunder. It doesn't need a solid ax..."
Jeep Wrangler
"...-brand or whatever, I'd say like, let's make our Wrangler, whatever that is, could be the crater. Is there..."
Outback Wilderness
"so great. And then a super outback wilderness. Yeah."
Willys Jeep
"...m scratch? Again, no credit, no product line, no Willys Jeep that helped win World War II or whatever. Yeah, ..."
Porsche 911
"...ou do a mid-cycle refresh, rinse, repeat, Porsche 911 every eight years. And the first major manufactu..."
Kia Stinger
"...t's just like, you know what? Everyone likes the Stinger and not selling, gone, you know? It's like, what..."
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