Hyundai to Bring Full I-Series Small Cars to India

Hyundai Motor India Ltd. is bringing its entire i-series range of compact cars to India in a well-orchestrated plan.

Despite a gloomy market, Hyundai is riding high on the i10, launched last year. The new model in its first seven months sold more than 65,000 units in India.

The subcompact now offers a choice of a 1.1L Epsilon or 1.2L new Kappa engine. The newer mill has more power, improved fuel economy and meets Euro-5 emissions standards with 119 g/km of carbon dioxide.

“With continuous innovation in technology and design, the engine is the best in its class,” says Hyundai India Managing Director and CEO H.S. Lheem. “With continuous innovation in technology and design, the engine is the best in its class,” says Hyundai India Managing Director and CEO H.S. Lheem.

The Hyundai i20 Getz replacement, which makes its debut at the Paris auto show in October, will be available here by December, and in two years time the i30 and i40 will arrive. Additionally, the auto maker in the next three to four years will offer an 0.8L small car now under development that will launch globally from India.

The i20 will be built alongside the i10 at Hyundai’s recently opened, second Indian facility in Sriperumbudur. Parent Hyundai Motor Co. Ltd. insists it is not looking to compete with the super low-priced Tata Nano, which will sell for $2,500.

“(The) Nano is not our focus segment. We do not have the capability or expertise to match Tata (Motors Ltd.),” Lheem says.

Hyundai India’s combined domestic sales and exports jumped 33.9% in August, to 44,710 units. That compares with declines at Maruti Suzuki Ltd., down 9.2%, and Tata, off 6.2%.

To meet the industry slowdown, Hyundai India has changed its production plans. In the year’s first-half, the auto maker built 58% of its cars for local consumption and 42% for exports.Second-half builds will see 45% earmarked for the domestic market and 55% for export.

Hyundai is India’s largest exporter of cars, shipping 23,100 units in August. Hyundai also has deferred its decision to introduce a third shift at its new plant with a 300,000-unit annual capacity in the wake of the slowing market here. The plant produces about 830 vehicles per day with two day shifts. The nightshift, if introduced, would have added 1,200 workers and taken output to 1,190 vehicles per day. Hyundai’s first plant, which also has an annual capacity of 300,000 units, employs three shifts and rolls out 1,080 vehicles per day.

Hyundai India sells 10 models, with 30 variants across all the segments.

The new Kappa mill is manufactured at Hyundai’s newly opened $250 million engine and transmission plant in Chennai that has annual capacity for 250,000 units.

Developed over a period of 48 months, the Kappa is being produced in three variations for India, Europe and other world markets.

The India version has a displacement of 1.2L and generates 80 hp. For Europe and other markets, the engine has a 2.5L displacement.

The Kappa-equipped i10 here will be available with a 4-speed automatic transmission. “Looking at the current market scenario, we are happy with Hyundai’s overall sales,” says Arvind Saxena, senior vice president. “This again reinforces our belief that a strong product portfolio will see you through the tough times.”

Hyundai studying US market for i10 launch

Hyundai Motor India is studying the US market to develop strategies for launching its small car, the i10.

The US is not a “small car market” and hence introducing the i10 will involve careful study of the market.

“The ‘Elantra’ is considered a small car in the US,” said Han-Woo Park, referring to the 1.8-litre, Rs 8-lakh car, one of the premium vehicles in India.

While the Americans are not typical small car buyers, changes in the economy and rising oil prices could cause a shift in preference towards the more fuel-efficient vehicles, Park told Business Line today.

The i10 was launched in October last year and has already sold 190,000 numbers. Hyundai expects to cross the 200,000-mark in less than two weeks from now.

Nearly half the sales have been outside India — something that has given Hyundai India the confidence to take it across the Atlantic.

The car, manufactured only in India, is currently sent to over 100 countries.

Hyundai has an overseas order backlog of 15,000 cars. To mark the success of the i10, Hyundai India is taking two cars of that model to the Paris Motor Show that is to take place early October.

The cars are to be flown to Istanbul and will be driven through a circuitous route touching several countries in Europe, before reaching Paris.

The journey of the i10 began on September 10 at New Delhi, when the cars were flagged off from the India Gate.

The Indian leg concluded with the arrival of the cars to Chennai today. From here, they will be airlifted to Istanbul.

Reworked engine

To suit European tastes, Hyundai India has played around the Kappa engine, giving it a 50 per cent additional power.

Since the launch of the 1.2-litre Kappa engine last July the company has churned out about 25,000 units of i10 with the new engine.

The demand for Kappa engine has been increasing since the engine is Euro 5 ready and emits only 119g/km of CO2, which is the lowest for this class of cars.

However, for the European customers, the capacity of the Kappa has been raised to 1.25-litres. The increase of 50 cc in the cubic capacity of the combustion chamber supports the additional power and torque requirements of European customers, said the Vice-President (Operations) of the company, M. Inderjit.

Besides it also supports the additional load drawn by accessories like heater and such things that consume more power from the battery, he added. At present about 60 per cent of the i10s exported is with Kappa engine, the rest feature the 1.1-litre ‘Epsilon’ engine.

Hyundai launches "Kappa Challenge"

Hyundai Motor India, the second largest passenger car maker and the largest exporter of cars from India in a first-of-its-kind initiative has thrown open the 'Kappa Challenge' - a unique concept to touch, feel, drive and experience the all new powerful i10 equipped with Kappa engine to all its existing and potential customers. Set to prove the supremacy of Kappa engine as compared to its competitors in its category, the 'Kappa Challenge' will start from 23 August, 2008 across 10 different cities in India.

One of the first event to be organized at Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai on the 23 - 24 August, the challenge is open to all the existing and potential customers. The participants will go head-to-head completing a set of challenges and also driving other cars to find out which is the better car of the lot.

Throughout the session the participants will be test driving the i10 Kappa and the competitor cars in different driving and parking conditions and will be assessed on their driving and parking skills. All the participants will be handed out an assured gift apart from the grand prize of an i10 Kappa to be won through lucky draw.

The 'Kappa Challenge' will also offer several other interesting options to choose from such as Special Finance Scheme counter, Product Demonstration & Sales counter, Used Car counter, Accessories zone and Children's fun-filled zone. The customers will also have the advantage of availing the benefits of Always Around activity of getting their cars cleaned-up, polished and basic mechanical inspection done at the venue itself.

Speaking on the occasion, Arvind Saxena, Sr VP, Marketing & Sales, HMIL, said, "Our new i10 with the Kappa engine is the best in its class today with more power, less fuel consumption and lower CO2 emissions. We have created this event to provide an opportunity to all our existing and potential customers to find out for themselves about the superior features and driveability of the i10 and compare it to other cars in this class. We as manufacturers might be absolutely convinced about our product but it is very important for us to instil the same level of confidence in our potential customers as well. We are convinced that anyone who takes the challenge will go away convinced that the i10 is the best product in its category."

The Kappa i10 was launched in three variants the Magna, Sportz and the Asta with all top end features like the sunroof, 2-Din audio system, a unique red pack for the Sportz interiors and some class leading safety features like anti-lock braking system (ABS) and dual airbags. The new Kappa i10 is also available with an automatic transmission and it is sold along with the existing Epsilon 1.1 litre engine variant and is available in a range of 10 colours.