After the success of the Renault duster, every carmaker seems keen to jump onto the compact SUV bandwagon in India. The latest to be considering a product in the hot category is Hyundai Motor India Limited. The company is preparing a compact SUV, along with an MPV – two segments where the company doesn’t have presence in, and where it sees immense potential.
In an interview to Livemint, the MD of Hyundai’s Chennai plant Mr. Bo Shin Seo said that the Korean company was planning a compact SUV and an MPV. Mr Seo insisted that the company doesn’t have a small SUV and an MPV in the market, which is somewhat restricting Hyundai from increasing its market share substantially in India. He added that these product categories were never a part of Hyundai’s portfolio, but the company is preparing products for the category now.
Hyundai has been evaluating the emerging trends and will launch products in the coming years to cater to the consumers’ requirement. As a part of the strategy, the company will one to two new cars every year for the next few years. For the year 2013, the BA will be a brand new product, meant to be positioned between the i10 and the i20.
The company is also focusing on establishing itself as a player in the upper segment. While the cars in the smaller categories are doing well, additional focus in on the Sonata, Elantra and the Verna.
We expect the new compact SUV to debut by late 2014. Stay tuned for more dope on this products which is still in its embryonic stage.