[Aditya]

Hyundai is reported to be revising its strategy for the entry-level hatchback segment. The company is rumoured to be developing a new vehicle, codenamed AH. This car will feature crossover styling.

Hyundai is planning to introduce the AH in India by late 2018. It plans to sell around 95,000 to 1 lakh units of the car every year.

Renault launched the Kwid hatchback in September 2015. The company styled it like a crossover to make it stand out from other cars in the A segment. The Kwid has been a sales success, pushing the Hyundai Eon down to third place in the segment. Hyundai believes the Kwid's styling has been one of the reasons that customers are attracted towards it.

Mahindra's KUV100, which was launched in January 2016, features SUV styling as well. The car has managed to make space for itself in the highly competitive B2 segment.

Source: ET Auto

[Sebring]

What if the SUV fad wears off and India moves to under 4 metre pick-ups trucks then (For example)? Hyundai has to spot the next big trend in order to be successful. And this will happen only through extensive research.

[hybridpetrol]

Originally Posted by Sebring

What if the SUV fad wears off and India moves to under 4 metre pick-ups trucks then (For example)? Hyundai has to spot the next big trend in order to be successful. And this will happen only through extensive research.

Hyundai has got itself a name for its plush interiors and strong customer service network. For this same reason, it is able to create successful models, though late to the party. Consider Creta as a recent example - Hyundai came with a neat product which ticked most boxes, and took away a large chunk of the market which had only the Duster & Terrano to start with.
My point? Even though late to the party, the arrival of market leaders are awaited by the masses.
4 metre pick-up trucks?? It should be a product from Datsun, not from Hyundai!

[mukul32]

One could definitely see this one coming. After the compact mid-size crossover segment, here is where the action lies, plus owing to the cost bracket, here is where the volumes also lie. And a company like Hyundai simply couldn't have missed out on this pie for too long. And as it is a Hyundai after all, we may safely expect it to have crowd-pleasing looks, an efficient motor, quality interiors, and a couple of gimmicks to market the car. As for the actual design, expect this one to be sort of a 'mini-Creta'. The Creta has a squared-off design and is relatively easy to copy to a smaller form and try to pull off the SUV look. And Hyundai wouldn't miss the chance of cashing on the huge appeal that the Creta has generated either.

At the same time, as an enthusiast, such a product, or rather such a segment itself, isn't good news at all. The budget segment is where we have seen a lot of action and real hard work from the manufacturers, such as in the Kwid, earlier on the Eon, and of course in the bestseller Alto. Even the Nano has constantly been updated by Tata. We saw more powerful engines, more desirable designs and new tech like AMT's also coming up in this segment.

But now instead of sweating hard to develop a better product than those of the rivals, we may come to see this shortcut one-upmanship game from the carmakers. Instead of making a good car to win over the customer, just make an 'SUV' to trap his emotions and happily watch it sell. Marketing of these cars under the 'SUV' tag by showrooms, taking digs at rivals' hatchbacks in ads, and such practises could be coming in too.

And even in this particular case, we have Hyundai coming into the game, who despite all the commercial success they have achieved recently, have been possibly the least enthusiast-friendly, the least innovative and the least proactive mainstream car manufacturer in India recently. All they have done is to blatantly copy successful formulas from others or from their own cars, and round them off to a safe, all-pleasing form. It is a sure-shot success strategy, but that robs all their cars of any character whatsoever. Except for their 3 most expensive cars here, no car (not even the i20) evokes any emotions on looking at it anymore. Gone are the days of the old Sonata or the Terracan.
Since the (OG) i10, they haven't launched a single unconventional or innovative product in India. They could never make a brave effort like that of the Kwid, the Ertiga, the Go+, etc. (The Eon was close but not good enough). And again, it is only once they see potential in the Kwid that they are out to create a rival.

Alright, coming back to this 'AH', this seems like another massive success even before it exists, doesn't it? I guess we need not say anything more. Oh yes, one interesting thing to see will be whether they will use the 1.1 diesel on the i10 in this car as well.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Hyundai has to spot the next big trend in order to be successful. And this will happen only through extensive research.

Well, they do actually. Hyundai did get a lot of things right (e.g. premium hatchbacks).

However, the market leaders don't get everything right. Hyundai & Maruti have both been late to the SUV space, yet both of them totally cracked it with the Creta & Vitara Brezza.

You can be sure of one thing: if a newbie makes a success out of a niche product (e.g. Renault & the Duster), the big guys will definitely attack that segment with all their might eventually.

Originally Posted by mukul32

here is where the action lies, plus owing to the cost bracket, here is where the volumes also lie.

The A segment is actually smaller than the B segment. Further, profitability is too difficult in the A segment, which is why few manufacturers bother with it at all.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Sebring

What if the SUV fad wears off

Don't see that happening soon, unless our roads improve a lot. For a family with a single car only, I'm convinced crossovers are the way to go. The markets seems to agree gradually.

[RavenAvi]

The Hyundai "AH" might be christened as the "Santro", thus bringing back the much-popular nameplate.

It will have a tallboy-ish stance, spacious interiors and is expected to be priced above the Kwid.

This indicates that the Eon will continue, while the AH might replace the now-aged i10 in the Hyundai lineup, slotting itself below the Grand i10.

Our sources state that this hatchback has spacious interiors and it will have tall boyish stance. This platform will be shared by the company for the Kia brand as well.

The vehicle could be called as Santro, however internally in the team, it is being referred as AH, and mostly could get the Santro name back. The Hyundai Santro was the first and the most successful model for the company and our sources claim that this will be the product that will make a return. This time it will be back in a new avatar with more space, features, power and even fuel-efficiency.

Hyundai is looking at launching this new hatchback by October 2018. This will be done to mark the 20th anniversary of the Korean car brand in India. In October 1998, Hyundai began its Indian journey with the launch of the Santro. The Korean car maker is looking at celebrating this grand occasion.

This will have the 1.0-litre engine that is highly refined, has better performance and even better fuel efficiency. Hyundai will be offering this with a five-speed manual option. The Eon will stay as the smallest Hyundai, while the Hyundai AH will be priced in the i10 range. Hyundai AH will be priced between INR 3.5 lakhs to INR 5.5 lakhs (on-road), and will rival the Wagon R, Celerio, Tata Tiago and the Chevrolet Beat.

Motor Octane