Hyundai published the first images of the facelifted Venue in India, ahead of its official debut on June 16. The small SUV is already available to pre-order in the Indian market, while it is possible that the mid-lifecycle updates will find their way to other markets as well since it has already been three years since the Venue’s introduction.
The Venue remains instantly recognisable
besides the redesigned front and rear ends. At the front, the grille has grown
larger with a cleaner shape, a parametric-style pattern inspired by larger
Hyundai models, and a new Dark Chrome frame. The upper part of the split
headlights is longer with three LED elements, while the lower part of the
bumper gained a single elongated air intake and an aluminium-style skid plate.
While most facelifts neglect the rear end,
Hyundai designers did a lot of work in this section. The highlight is the new
full-width taillights with modern LED graphics. Also, the new rear bumper
mimics the design of the front end, with an elongated black element housing the
reflectors and a skid plate. Hyundai didn’t announce the dimensions of the
updated Venue but the slightly tweaked bumpers mean it won’t deviate much from
the existing model.
Inside, the Venue will gain a new
infotainment with more than 60 Bluelink connected car features and the ability
to control several vehicle functions remotely (door lock/unlock, climate
control, location, tire pressure, etc) through the Home to car (H2C) system.
The Alexa and Google Voice Assistant will be compatible with both English and
Hindi languages. Another new feature will be the “Sounds of Nature” – also
found in other Hyundai and Genesis models – that will make driving in the
Indian traffic a more relaxing experience. Hyundai also showed a photo of the
digital instrument cluster revealing three driving modes – Normal, Eco, and
Sport. Finally, rear passengers will benefit from the new two-step reclining
seats that will improve practicality.
Hyundai has confirmed it will offer five
trim levels of the updated Venue. Powertrain options are carried over from the
existing model including a naturally aspirated 1.2-liter MPi petrol, a
turbocharged 1.0-liter T-GDi petrol, and a 1.5-liter CRDi turbodiesel. All of
the Hyundai venue variants are front-wheel-drive, with a choice of manual, DCT
automatic, or Hyundai’s intelligent manual transmission (iMT) depending on the
powertrain. Rivals of the Hyundai Venue in India include the
mechanically-related Kia Sonet, the Tata Nexon and the Maruti Suzuki Brezza.
The Venue might be the smallest SUV offered by Hyundai in the US, but Indian
buyers will also have access to the even smaller Hyundai Casper.
