Hyundai to launch compact sedan and SUV in next two years

The current industry trend suggests that the demand for compact family cars like Amaze, EcoSport, Duster, Dzire has increased quite significantly. Car manufacturers have started working on their compact sedans or SUVs, and few already have their own in the market. Based on the market requirement, the South Korean carmaker Hyundai is also aiming to launch a compact sedan and an SUV in India in the next two years.

Hyundai has recently launched the new Grand i10 hatchback in the Indian car market, which has been developed on a new platform. The same platform will also be used to develop the compact sedan and SUV for the Indian market. However, few of the media reports suggest that the mini SUV will be based on a new platform. The company will first introduce a compact sedan in 2014 and then a mini sports utility vehicle in 2015.

Hyundai's compact SUV will compete against the likes of Renault Duster, Ford EcoSport, and upcoming Nissan Terrano and Maruti Suzuki's production version of the concept XA Alpha. It is expected to share some of its styling cues from the company's flagship Santa Fe. The mini-SUV is expected to be priced around Rs. 7-8 lakh (ex-showroom).

While the compact SUV will be introduced by early 2015, a Grand i10 based compact sedan will drive in a year earlier, or in the next year's Indian Auto Expo. It is also speculated that Hyundai is testing the compact sedan's prototypes. The notchback would be a perfect answer to the likes of Maruti Swift Dzire and Honda Amaze, as both vehicles were also based on Swift and Brio hatchbacks, respectively.

The sedan will carry Hyundai's fluidic design philosophy, and a more powerful diesel engine. It is likely to be powered by a 1.4-litre CRDi diesel engine that also powers the i20 hatch. The compact sedan is expected to be priced in the range of Rs. 5-7 lakh.