Hot on the heels of Mary Barra's installment atop GM (and Jonathan Browning leaving his CEO post at Volkswagen of America), Hyundai's North American president, John Krafcik, will step down at the end of 2013.

No reason was given for his departure, but a higher-up at the company's sales department, David Zuchowski, will take the reins on New Year's Day.

After early struggles with breaking into the American market, Hyundai gained footing in the US during Krafcik's half-decade-long term as CEO. The company's program to buy back cars from unemployed customers during the financial crisis was a big hit (and made a big profit, since only 350 parties redeemed the offer).

To us, the Genesis Coupe and Sedan—as well as their respective R-trimmed models, which rolled out under his watch—will define Krafcik's legacy. We're fans of any CEO who approves a reasonably priced, turbocharged rear-drive coupe (though we're far less fond when the EPA ratings don't exactly match up to real-world economy).

Nevertheless, in the past five years, we've come to respect Krafcik—both as a clever exec and as a first-name-basis type of guy. We'll certainly be interested to see how Hyundai fares without his influence.

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