Hyundai could surprise us with a compact SUV this year
Hyundai has been working on a compact SUV and there is no hiding in it. It is the new segment that most of the automotive manufacturers are eyeing and Hyundai being one of the largest car-seller in India will target this segment.
At the moment, the tests on the prototype are going on and we can expect Hyundai to launch the new compact SUV in India, maybe even by the end of this year or even during the upcoming festive season.
Hyundai is showcasing the ix25 in the Beijing Motor Show in April, but that is based on the i20 platform. This could be the same product that they might be targeting for India, however we don’t have any confirmed news on this. At the moment, Ford, Renault and Nissan are the only players in this segment. Tata, General Motors, Maruti Suzuki and even Mahindra are working on introducing a compact SUV for the Indian market. Hyundai has been aggressive with its products and even the pricing; hence we can expect this compact SUV to make a mark on the Indian market. The company has just launched the Hyundai XCent, which is the new compact sedan competing with the Honda Amaze and the Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire.
This new compact SUV is likely to be available with the 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre diesel options depending on the segment Hyundai wants to the target. Possibly it can target the Ecosport and the Duster pricing with both engine options and also surprise everyone as it already has a diesel automatic option available on the 1.6-litre diesel. Speculations suggest it will have a 2.0-litre diesel engine, however we believe might not be for the Indian car market.
Being born and brought up in a family that has been a part of the Automotive industry for over seven decades, Rachit has cars in his blood. Four wheelers are his childhood love, and he has grown up playing with bolts and spanners. To add more value to this passion, he studied automobile engineering and even karted at National level competitions.
Soon after that, he got into motoring journalism- where began the process of testing and evaluating cars. He has driven a wide range of cars beginning from Tata Nano to the Aston Martins, most of the cars that are currently sold in the Indian car market. Apart from this, he has also done many long road trips, and shall continue to do so. Rachit was one of the first journalists to take a Nano across the Golden Quadrilateral.
