India’s number two carmaker Hyundai Motor India (HMIL) has finally unveiled its much-anticipated sub-compact SUV ‘Venue’. The SUV, Hyundai says, has been built to have global appeal and with the automaker packing it with many first-in-the-segment connectivity features, it is set to take the battle to competitors like Maruti Suzuki’s Vitara Brezza, Tata Motors’ Nexon, Mahindra’s XUV300 and the Ford EcoSport.
The Venue, unveiled at sea off the coast of Mumbai on Thursday, will officially be launched in the Indian market on May 21 when its price will be revealed. But, dealer sources say, that high customer interest has already driven a few dealerships to take unofficial bookings for the model. The car is expected to be priced between Rs 8 lakh to Rs 12 lakh.
While a quick look might give an impression that the Venue is a smaller version of its bigger siblings in the Hyundai stable, the huge grille and sleek headlamps give it a rather different look. However, Hyundai is betting more on the connectivity features it has packed into the car’s frame to attract customers. The model has 33 connected features, Hyundai says, 10 of which are India-specific.
“Being India’s ‘first connected SUV’ not only makes Hyundai Venue a new benchmark in the segment, but also demonstrates Hyundai’s unwavering emphasis on offering the highest quality and feature-rich products to the customers,” S S Kim, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, HMIL, said, adding that the company is confident that the Venue will become the biggest player in the compact SUV segment.
Currently, Maruti Suzuki’s Vitara Brezza leads this segment with sales of between 13,000-14,000 units per month. Hyundai’s other popular compact SUV Creta sells around 10,000-11,000 units per month. However, PTI reported Kim as stating that Venue would have an edge over the Vitara Brezza as it comes in both petrol and diesel powertrains. Maruti Suzuki currently sells only a diesel-powered version of Vitara Brezza. Hyundai expects the Venue launch to take its SUV sales to 19,000 to 20,000 per month.
“With Venue, we are looking at leadership in the overall SUV segment; and not only the compact SUV vertical,” HMIL Senior General Manager Marketing Puneet Anand said. The compact SUV segment roughly records sales of around 25,000-26,000 per month and will expand with the launch of the Venue, he added.
As for the connected car pitch Hyundai is banking on, the company through its ‘Hyundai Blue Link’ technology has tied up with leading telecom player Vodafone-Idea to onboard features like auto crash notifications, panic notifications, SOS/Emergency Assistance, stolen vehicle tracking with immobilisation on the Venue.
Under the hood, Venue will come in three variants with different engines: a 1-litre Kappa GDi petrol, making its entry into India with the Venue launch, a 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.4-litre diesel. HMIL is also introducing a 7-speed dual clutch transmission (DCT) system with the Venue.
As for safety features, Venue will have six airbags, speed-sensing auto door lock, vehicle stability management and brake assist system, while also boasting a high-strength frame and build.