Saar: Codenamed AH2, the new Hyundai hatchback will become the least expensive offering from the South Korean carmaker in India.

Ever since Hyundai retracted the Santro badge from the Indian market, it has struggled to maintain a dominating position in the entry-level hatchback segment. The carmaker’s only offering in that space is the Eon and it never really troubled the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Alto and the Renault Kwid. With its sales continuously going downhill, Hyundai has decided to pull the plug on the Eon. The plan will be implemented by the end of this year.

The lacklustre performance of the Hyundai Eon is only part of the problem. The car’s outdated platform and engines are pressing the issue home. It will be difficult for Hyundai to upgrade the Eon’s platform to meet the minimum crash-test norms, which will be implemented in India from October next year. The said norms will be based on a similar mantra that Euro NCAP (new car assessment programme) follows for crash-testing cars.

Then comes the problem with the engines. Currently, the Hyundai Eon is offered with two 3-cylinder petrol-fed mills – a 0.8-litre engine with 56PS/75Nm on tap and a 1.0-litre motor with 69PS/94Nm of oomph. While both engines are BS-IV compliant, neither is refined enough to be upgraded to meet the far-more-stringent BS-VI norms, which will kick-in nationwide from April 2020.

Putting all those issues together and the fact that the entry-level hatchback segment is losing its charm to comparatively bigger cars, it is only logical for Hyundai to put the poor Eon out of its misery. However, it won’t leave the space empty. The South Korean carmaker has been working to bring an all-new small car in India and it is codenamed as the AH2. Many believe that Hyundai might bring back the Santro badge with this new car to try and relive the good old days.

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The new car in question is expected to launch around the festive period this year. With the Eon gone, Hyundai will have some space in its production plant in Chennai, which is currently running at nearly 99 per cent capacity. It is also believed that the Hyundai AH2 will become the first car from the carmaker which will offer an AMT (automated manual transmission). Needless to say, the platform and the engines will be refined enough for it to meet the minimum requirements in the upcoming Bharat NCAP crash-test norms and the BS-VI emission standards.

Source: LiveMint