Hyundai Motor India
Ltd (HMIL) Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Y K Koo, told Deccan
Herald in an interview that the Korean car company will launch nine models from
now till 2020. Further, he stated that these would involve "two facelifts,
two new segment vehicles, four full-model changes and an electric vehicle".
Out of its current
portfolio, the Hyundai Tucson has already received a facelift abroad and is
expected to launch in India in H1 2019. A facelifted Hyundai Elantra is ready
and will be introduced in India next year.
Hyundai's two all
new vehicles are the Hyundai AH2 (codename) small car and the Hyundai QXi
(codename) sub-4 meter SUV which was previewed by way of the Hyundai Carlino
concept at the 2016 Auto Expo. The AH2 is expected to bring back the Santro
nameplate albeit with a suffix. It will launch in October 2018, whereas the QXi
is expected in H1 2019.
The electric
vehicle will be the Hyundai Kona EV. Mr. Koo did not confirm the product but
stated that the launch would take place in end-2019. The Kona will be Hyundai's
first electric vehicle in India and rather than churning volumes, is expected
to gauge the Indian buyer's response towards such a product. Based on the
response, and initiatives planned by the Indian government towards
electrification, HMIL, being an indigenous product specialist, won't rely too
much on the international pool, and could think of more electrified Indian
projects in the hatch and sedan segments like Tata Motors and M&M.
Hyundai's four
full-model changes will be successors to the Grand i10, Xcent, i20 and the
Creta. It is to be noted that all four products have received their mid-life
facelifts, and the Grand i10 is the oldest of the lot (launched in September
2013).
