Hyundai has successfully migrated from its small car reputation to the reputation of an SUV manufacturer. In a segment dominated by the Mahindra and Toyota, Hyundai made its name with some aggressive-looking products that carried the Hyundai’s evolving design languages and bold hexagonal front-grille to make bold statements.
Now, the Hyundai has the Santa Fe positioned as a top of the line SUV. Below the Santa Fe, the Tucson will be positioned as a premium SUV. And currently, the Hyundai Creta beginning around Rs. 9.16 lakh (ex-showroom) is part of the Hyundai’s high volume segment among SUVs.
Even below the Hyundai Creta, the Korean carmaker wants to position a subcompact SUV in the year 2018. It will likely be positioned at the entry-level and will likely have its debut at the 2018 Auto Expo. So, this new subcompact SUV will make it as the 4th model in the Hyundai’s current portfolio.
Hyundai intends the SUV to rival the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Ford EcoSport, Mahindra TUV 300 and the soon-to-be launched Tata Nexon. It also considers the space as quite huge that it believes not prudent to miss out on.
As the mass market takes a shift towards crossovers and entry-level subcompact SUVs moving from small cars, the Hyundai believes it needs to have a strong presence in the segment. Besides the SUV segment, Hyundai will also look forward to making a mark in the crossover segment with the i20 Active.
The new subcompact SUV will also borrow new design language concepts of the Hyundai from the upcoming Tucson and the upcoming i30 debuting in Europe. The SUV might also share its powertrain with the Creta, while it will be sold in both India as well as exported abroad.
