Hyundai i30 hatchback will debut carmaker’s upgraded Bluelink app

Hyundai is all set to upgrade its Bluelink connected car services technology with a range of new features. The new i30 will be the company’s first model to be equipped with the upgraded Bluelink.

In addition to a refined user interface, the upgraded Hyundai Bluelink offers a range of new benefits and services for Hyundai customers, including Connected Routing, Last Mile Navigation and live parking information, and a new user profile feature.

“Following the successful rollout of Bluelink across our line up, we are now pleased to be offering Hyundai drivers an enhanced package of connected car services starting with the new i30," says Andreas-Christoph Hofmann, Vice President Marketing and Product at Hyundai Motor Europe. “By further expanding our state-of-the-art Bluelink platform with even more exciting features, we are demonstrating our commitment to providing the most advanced technology for Hyundai customers."

Hyundai’s upgraded Bluelink features a new user interface (UI) with a black screen and updated blue icons that display the time, weather and, if selected by the user, map guidance.

The map UI now offers a choice between three colour schemes and an enhanced dark night mode. It displays a range of GPS-based information to aid drivers, including the current speed of the vehicle and information about traffic density.

For a more tranquil driving experience, users can also select from different audible atmospheres called “Sounds of Nature". These include “calm ocean waves", “rainy day", “open-air cafe", “warm fireplace" and “snowy village".

With the new cloud-based Connected Routing navigation, driving routes are calculated on a powerful server inside the Bluelink cloud environment, rather than through the car’s infotainment system. Connected Routing harnesses real-life and historical speed information through GPS, which is stored in the server and updated every month, to predict upcoming traffic every five minutes. This ensures more accurate traffic forecasting, more precise times of arrival, and more reliable route recalculations. In addition, the technology uses AI to learn the preferred routes of users.

The new Last Mile Navigation feature allows customers to continue the journey to their final destination after their car has parked. After turning off the engine, a pop-up appears on the screen to activate last mile guidance on the Bluelink smartphone app. The user can then choose from either Augmented Reality guidance or Google Maps, and is guided for a range of between 200 metres and two kilometres on their smartphone.

With the new User Profile feature, drivers can install up to two main accounts and one guest account, and upload a profile picture via the Bluelink app. User Profile stores users’ vehicle preferences, such as the position of the wing mirrors or their favoured cluster layout, in the cloud. This allows drivers as well to easily transfer their preferred settings between different Hyundai cars for even more convenience.

The Live Parking Information function has also received a series of upgrades, with new settings for parking type and availability. On-street parking and price information is now available in 43 countries, including all major cities - up from 75 major cities in Europe.

Like the previous version of Bluelink, parking information is updated every 15 minutes via GPS. One kilometre before the vehicle arrives at its destination, a parking icon pops up on the screen. The user must then click on the icon and a full list of on- and off-street parking is then shown on the map.

In addition, live filling station information includes fuel prices as before, but now illustrates these with different colours on the map. A green dot signifies relatively low prices, while a red dot shows where prices are higher. Like parking information, prices for filling stations are also updated every 15 minutes.

The design of the speed camera feature has received a design overhaul. Drivers are alerted 300 metres before they approach a speed camera on normal roads, and one kilometre ahead on motorways. In addition, GPS-based data shows the vehicle’s speed on the screen, which is highlighted in red when the car is above the speed limit.

The design of the speed camera feature has received a design overhaul. Drivers are alerted 300 metres before they approach a speed camera on normal roads, and one kilometre ahead on motorways. In addition, GPS-based data shows the vehicle’s speed on the screen, which is highlighted in red when the car is above the speed limit.

Users can now search for an address or POI in one menu utilising data based on an online “Free Text Search". Additionally, POI search now has autofill functionality to save drivers time in selecting a destination.

This autumn, customers of Hyundai models already equipped with Bluelink can visit their certified Hyundai dealer in order to get a software upgrade so they can enjoy these new services as well.

The new i30 features an updated design, new 1.5-litre T-GDI engine and, for the first time, a 48-volt mild hybrid option. In addition, the sporty-looking N Line trim is available for the first time on the new i30 Wagon.