China was the first market worldwide to receive the new generation Hyundai Verna, and so, naturally, it will be the market where the sedan will get its mid-life facelift, by 2020. In a new development, the Chinese-spec 2020 Hyundai Verna's design has leaked months ahead of its market launch.

The changes made in design look a tad extreme. The front-end is entirely new and reminiscent of the Hyundai Lafesta a little. The new radiator grille, headlamps, bumper and headlamps, which could be LED units in the range-topping trim, all combine together to make the face of the sedan sharper and brawnier. On the sides, there are new machine-finished alloy wheels that simply don't go with the sedan's character. The rear arguably the most unattractive angle now. The designers have tried to mimic the look of the Lafesta and the Sonata with those connected tail lamps and have apparently made the sedan less appealing than before instead of refreshing it.


The Chinese-spec 2020 Hyundai Verna looks overdone and has a polarising design. There's no doubt that the Indian-spec 2020 Hyundai Verna will feature a different design that won't seem outlandish. The pre-facelift Hyundai Verna also has a different design in our market.

The current Chinese-spec Hyundai Verna is available with naturally aspirated 1.4- and 1.6-litre D-CVVT petrol engines. The 1.4-litre engine produces 99 PS and 132 Nm of torque and comes with a 6-speed manual transmission or a 6-speed automatic transmission. The bigger 1.6-litre engine churns out 122 PS and 150 Nm of torque. The transmission duties on this are handled by a 6-speed automatic transmission. New in the facelifted model will be an option for a CVT, a previous spy shot had revealed.