Hyundai AX1 is expected to launch in India in the early stages of 2022 and it will likely rival the upcoming Tata HBX concept based micro SUV
Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) has either been refreshing or bringing out new generation products to lure in modern-day customers in recent years. Resultantly, the second generation Creta mid-size SUV, third-gen i20 premium hatchback, facelifted Verna and Tucson came to the fore.
The South Korean auto major will be hosting the global premiere of the Alcazar seven-seater SUV early next month before going on sale by June 2021. It will likely be followed by a micro SUV. The brand has been conducting road testing of a small SUV in its home market of South Korea for many months and currently, the Bayon and Venue are the compact SUVs sold.
What has been codenamed the AX1 will likely have an overall length of fewer than four metres and it will help in pricing the product aggressively due to the tax benefits that come along in India. The test mule is certainly evolving and the latest set of spy pictures shows some of the highlighting design details.
The upright front fascia comprises a split headlamp cluster with LED Daytime Running Lights that appear to be sitting on top while the bonnet structure has a clamshell shape. The radiator grille has a large opening to let the air in as well. Despite its compactness, the Hyundai AX1 looks to have a well-proportioned exterior with sufficient ground clearance.
Besides the rectangular wheel arches, the rectangular turn indicators, tall pillars, slightly raked front windshield, sturdy roof rails, 0-shaped alloy wheels, wraparound LED tail lamps, etc can also be noted. As for the performance, markets like India could use the 1.2-litre naturally-aspirated petrol engine currently employed in the i20.
It produces around 83 PS and 115 Nm, and it could be paired with a five-speed manual as standard. The top-end variants of the Hyundai AX1 are expected to be offered with an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, multi-functional steering wheel with mounted controls, semi-digital instrument cluster, rear AC vents, and so on.