Hyundai Verna facelift to get all-new 1.5 diesel and petrol engines

Launched recently in August 2017, the Hyundai Verna is in the early stages of its life cycle and isn’t due for a mid-life facelift for the next couple of years. But, given the long lead time needed for product development in the auto industry, Hyundai has already begun work on the refreshed Verna, which is slated for launch in the second half of 2020.

The updated Verna will have more than the usual change of soft parts like bumpers, grilles, typical of most facelifts, and will come with extensive sheet metal changes which, according to company sources, “will make it look like an all-new car.” A new bonnet, new fenders and possibly a new boot lid are some the changes expected, and the interiors too will be revamped with fresh instrumentation and the next-gen infotainment system that incorporates advanced telematics.

“Connectivity is of growing importance and our next area of focus will be telematics,” said a company source. The next generation of telematics, which the Verna facelift will eventually use, will make its debut in the Hyundai compact SUV (Codename: QXI) that goes on sale in the first half of 2019.

The big news, however, is under the hood, where the 1.6-litre diesel engine will be replaced with an all-new 1.5 diesel which will comply with the new BS-VI emission norms that'll come into effect on April 1, 2020. This new engine, apart from being cleaner, is expected to be more refined and fuel-efficient but could be down on power. It is reliably learned that to meet the more stringent emission norms, the max power output has gone from 128hp to 115hp, while torque too is down from 260Nm to 250Nm.

An all-new 1.5 petrol motor is on the cards too, and it will eventually replace the current 1.6 unit, but we have no details on the power and torque outputs. What is for certain, however, is that the new petrol motor will be packaged to take a 48V hybrid system to be future-ready for 2023 and beyond when the emission norms are likely to get even tighter.

The all-new 1.5 petrol and diesel motors will first make their debut in 2019 and most likely in the production version of the Kia SP Concept SUV that is due to go on sale in the first half of 2019. However, the Kia engines won’t be BS-VI compliant at launch.