Hyundai aims to double Verna sales and overtake Honda City

The new Verna already has more than 8,000 bookings; deliveries to commence soon.

Published On Mar 21, 2023 05:22:00 PM

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The all-new Hyundai Verna made its global debut today in India. The midsize sedan is priced from Rs 10.90 lakh and goes up to Rs 17.38 lakh for the fully loaded variant (ex-showroom, Delhi). It now comes with four petrol-only powertrain options and ADAS features.

New Hyundai Verna gets two engine options, 4 variants
Verna top variant costs Rs 17.38 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)

Hyundai eyes segment leadership with new Verna

The Korean carmaker is aiming to double Verna’s sales with its new-generation model and eyes grabbing the segment leadership from longstanding Japanese rival Honda City. Hyundai claims it has already received over 8,000 bookings of the sixth-generation Verna since February 13 when bookings opened.

Unveiling the new Verna, Tarun Garg, COO of Hyundai Motor India, said, “We are looking at achieving twice the volumes for this new-generation car. We are extremely bullish about the car and the potential in India’s sedan segment despite the action getting centred around SUVs over the last few years.”

Hyundai Motor India has sold over 19,000 units of the outgoing Verna in CY2022, and with its plan of doubling the sales, the company will target to sell about 36,000 to 38,000 units annually, claimed top company officials.

This is yet another attempt by Hyundai to dislodge Honda City from its leadership position. In the past too, the company had set its sight on the No. 1 position, but after the initial excitement around a new Hyundai product, the City has always emerged as the segment champion.

The all-new Verna is positioned right in the heart of the 1-1.25-lakh-unit midsize sedan segment, which has witnessed some enthused response with the Skoda Slavia and Volkswagen Virtus. Honda Cars India, too, updated the City sedan earlier in the month to retain its stronghold in the segment.

While the company has been averaging monthly sales of 1,500 units, if it manages to double volumes as targeted, the new Hyundai Verna may inch ahead of the Honda City sales, which are currently averaging at about 2,500 units a month.

New Hyundai Verna gets four powertrain options; no diesel

The new Verna has been introduced in two petrol engine options – a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated unit and a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol variant. While the former comes mated to a manual and CVT automatic gearbox, the latter comes equipped with manual and DCT transmission options.

As far as the standout features go, the Verna, like the City, also comes with Level-2 ADAS. Other key safety features include standardised six airbags and three-point seatbelts for all passengers.

For more on the Hyundai Verna, read our launch report here.

Ketan Thakkar, Mayank Dhingra

Also see:

New Hyundai Verna price, variants explained

New Hyundai Verna walkaround video

Hyundai Verna: Evolution of the City fighter