Hyundai is expected to relaunch the ‘Santro’ nameplate in India with its upcoming entry-level hatchback, which has been on test since quite some time now. The hatchback is expected to be launched in September, right before the 2018 festive season.
Pictured: Hyundai Atos
Interestingly, this September will mark 20 years of Hyundai in India as well as the Santro nameplate. The original Santro, which was also known as the Atos Prime in Europe and other markets, made its world debut in India on 23 September 1998. It was the first-ever Hyundai to be sold in India.
Puneet Anand, Sr. General Manager (Marketing) & Group Head at Hyundai Motor India recently said: “The 3-4 months long campaign titled #BrilliantMoments (Hyundai’s ongoing campaign) will be merged with the launch of our flagship complete family and contemporary car, which will be launched in the festive season before October. It will be in the compact segment.”
The Santro was famous for its tallboy design – helps in easy ingress and egress – and it seems like the new hatchback will follow suit. In fact, the upcoming Maruti Suzuki WagonR too will sport a tallboy design like the current one. Being a Hyundai, the new Santro is likely to be a feature loaded car and is expected to offer goodies such as a touchscreen infotainment system with Google Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, among others
Hyundai had earlier said that the new Santro would be taller and wider than the i10 (discontinued), which was 3585mm long and 1595mm wide. There’s a possibility that Hyundai might use the i10’s platform, albeit with modifications to meet the upcoming crash test norms in India. The Eon, which hasn’t received any updated since its introduction in October 2011, could be replaced by the new Santro over time. The Eon is also based on the discontinued i10’s platform.
Mechanically, the 2018 Santro could use the Eon’s 1.0-litre Kappa petrol engine with a 5-speed manual transmission. Hyundai is also expected to introduce an AMT (automated-manual transmission) on the Santro, which will be a first for Hyundai. Expect it to be fuel efficient with a certified figure likely to be around 25kmpl. Prices for the upcoming Santro are expected to begin from Rs 3.5 lakh and it will go up against the likes of the Maruti Celerio and the Tata Tiago.
Stay tuned to CD for more updates on the upcoming Hyundai Santro.
Disclaimer: This article has not been edited by Deccan Chronicle and is taken from a syndicated feed. Photos: CarDekho.
