Next-gen Hyundai Elite i20 will reportedly get new features including Sunroof and will have more interior space
Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) has the i twins dominating its market share for several years as the Grand i10 and Elite i20 lead the sales charts for the Korean brand. The Creta joined hands in July 2015 and the trio is posting consistent sales for over three years now. Among the three, the Grand i10 entered India in a crowded segment to rival Maruti Suzuki Swift but the same cannot be said for the other two.
The Elite i20 and Creta graced created limelight in their own ways. Credits to Hyundai, both the segments are largely being explored in recent times and arguably the most sought after by a country mile. Hyundai brought the Elite i20 to domestic customers back in August 2014 and even though the Honda Jazz and VW Polo have been on sale since 2009, the Korean hatchback did infuse a fresh lease of life into the segment.
The Elite i20 started outselling both the models and carved in a new benchmark. This prompted Maruti Suzuki to launch the Baleno in October 2015 to spice up the proceedings. The Elite i20 and Baleno traded top spots in the segment in monthly sales table repeatedly with little to choose between them but eventually the Baleno sold from Nexa premium dealerships started pulling away.
It can be argued that Maruti Suzuki Baleno did eat into the sales of Elite i20. However, not by a big margin due to buyers’ long-lasting preference in the premium hatchback space. Considering the last one year, the Hyundai Elite i20 has registered monthly average of around 12,000 units and is getting a brand new and promising rival from Tata Motors based on 45X concept next year.
With Tata’s aggressive strategy paying off in the last two years, the brand’s premium stature has improved by and large. Sensing the brand new competition, Hyundai could be introducing a brand new generation of the Elite i20 by the middle of 2020. It is important to note that the i20 received a substantial facelift earlier this year at 2018 Auto Expo to roll about in its current lifecycle.
A recent report emerged on the internet indicates that the 2020 Hyundai Elite i20 will have increased interior room along with better NVH levels. Topping off will be the added list of equipment including sunroof while the touchscreen will be heavily updated as well. No mechanical modifications are expected as the i20 will continue to be powered by 1.2-litre petrol and 1.4-litre litre diesel engines with BSVI compliance.
We expect the new-gen i20 to adorn styling changes as seen in the latest Elantra and if it turns out to be anything similar to the rendering, Hyundai definitely has a winner on its hands. Will the upcoming challenger from Tata dent the Elite i20’s sales and should Hyundai respond sooner than the predicted launch timeline of new model? Have your say below!