The Hyundai Stellar is the large family saloon Hyundai built from July 1983 until the 1992 model year. It succeeded the Ford Cortina, which Hyundai had built under licence, and it was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro on the rear-wheel-drive chassis of the Cortina Mark V, with engines and transmissions licensed from Mitsubishi. British observers saw it as a continuation of the Cortina, and Hyundai used that.
Hyundai Stellar at a glance
| Maker | Hyundai Motor Company |
|---|---|
| Production | July 1983 – 1992 |
| Design | Giorgetto Giugiaro |
| Chassis | Ford Cortina Mark V, rear-wheel drive |
| Engines | 1.4 (4G33), 1.6 (4G32) and, from 1987, 2.0 (4G63) litre Mitsubishi fours |
| Gearboxes | four or five-speed manual, three-speed automatic |
| Suspension | wishbone front, coil-sprung live rear axle |
| British sales | June 1984 – 1991 |
| 1987 update | Stellar II, MacPherson struts and larger brakes |
| Korea first | sold there as the Sonata in 1987 |
| Replaced by | Hyundai Sonata and Lantra |
| Length | 4,416 mm |
History of the Hyundai Stellar
The Stellar took over from the Cortina that Hyundai had been assembling since the late 1960s, using that car’s Mark V rear-wheel-drive chassis but with new bodywork by Giorgetto Giugiaro. Engines were Mitsubishi units: the 1.4-litre 4G33 already used in the Pony and the 1.6-litre 4G32 until 1986, with a 2.0-litre engine added in 1987. Transmissions were a four or five-speed manual from KM119 or a three-speed Borg-Warner automatic. Trims ran from the base L through GL, CL and SL to CXL and GSL; the top cars had power windows, locks and mirrors, remote fuel and boot releases, a premium sound system, full instrumentation, headlamp washers and air conditioning.
The Stellar’s Ford genes and conventional engineering made it a natural successor in the eyes of British buyers, many of whom were nervous about the radical Ford Sierra. Hyundai’s agency played on this with advertisements showing a jelly mould shaped like the Sierra above a picture of the Stellar. Like the Cortina, the Stellar had wishbones at the front and a coil-sprung live axle at the rear, and it was priced against smaller cars such as the Escort rather than the Sierra. It was sold in Britain from June 1984 until the Lantra arrived in 1991, and it was the second Hyundai imported to Europe, two years after the smaller Pony. British customers could even get the 2.0 GSL, sometimes called the Stellar Prima.
In 1987 the car became the Stellar II in many markets, or the Stellar 2.0 in Canada. It gained a two-way catalytic converter, a new instrument cluster, the larger 2.0-litre Mitsubishi 4G63 engine with a feedback two-barrel carburettor, a higher-output alternator, larger headlamps and restyled tail lights. The front suspension changed from double wishbones to MacPherson struts, with larger brake calipers and a two-piece driveshaft, and an automatic with overdrive became available. In Korea the same year it was the first Hyundai sold as the Sonata.
The Stellar was not sold in the United States because of emission standards, but it was available in Canada and elsewhere. After the Toyota Corolla moved to front-wheel drive in 1984 and the Daihatsu Charmant was dropped in 1987, it was the only inexpensive four-cylinder rear-wheel-drive saloon left. Canada and Europe replaced it with the Sonata in 1992, while Korean 1.8 and 2.0 LPG taxi models lasted until January 1997; the Stellar and the Pony were Hyundai’s last rear-wheel-drive cars in North America until the 2009 Genesis.
Design and features
- Cortina chassis: rear-wheel drive inherited from the Ford Cortina Mark V.
- Giugiaro body: a new shape from the Italian designer.
- Mitsubishi engines: licensed 1.4, 1.6 and later 2.0-litre fours.
- British appeal: pitched at buyers who found the Sierra too modern.
Hyundai Stellar versions
- Stellar (1983–1987): the original car with 1.4 and 1.6-litre engines.
- Stellar II (1987): 2.0-litre engine, MacPherson struts, new lights and trim.
- Stellar Prima: the 2.0 GSL version with larger bumpers and a new dashboard.
- Korean taxi models: 1.8 and 2.0 LPG cars built until January 1997.
The Stellar replaced the Cortina and was itself replaced by the Sonata and the Elantra. More Hyundai models are in the Hyundai collection.
Video: Hyundai Stellar 1983 Promo (Korea)
Video by m35a2 on YouTube.
Sources
- Hyundai Stellar, English Wikipedia: chassis, engines, trims, British market, Stellar II, end of production
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