New Hyundai Santro to target Maruti Suzuki Celerio

A few months ago, we broke the news of Hyundai toying with the idea of bringing back the Santro name for its new budget hatchback (codenamed AH2). We can now confirm that the Santro nameplate is all set to be finalised for the AH2 hatchback. We can also tell you the pre-bookings for the new Santro will commence October 10, 2018, and will remain open till October 22, 2018 – the day before the car's official launch.

Hyundai India had announced a naming contest for the AH2 hatchback last month and received an overwhelming response – nearly 50 per cent of the entries suggested the 'Santro' name for the AH2.

As per the first design sketch, the new Santro will retain the original's tall-boy stance, and will sport a kink in the window line (similar to the design element seen on the Carlino compact SUV concept revealed at the 2016 Auto Expo). It also looks like the new Santro will have pronounced and well-defined wheel arches.

While the new Santro will be wider than the original, it won't be quite as tall. At 1,560mm, the new Santro will be the same height as its chief rival, the Celerio. That being said, Hyundai has reportedly worked on making the new Santro's cabin very roomy. The focus has been on making the back seats a really comfortable place to be; and to that effect, Hyundai will also give the new Santro rear-AC vents – a first for its class.

As is the case with every Hyundai, the new Santro will be very well-equipped. Higher variants of the new Santro will get a 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system - the biggest in its class - which could potentially have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard. A reverse camera will also be part of the package.Two airbags and ABS could be standard across the range, since Hyundai would likely have readied the new Santro to meet India's updated crash test norms.

Under the hood of the new Santro will be a revised version of the original's 1.1-litre, 63hp Epsilon petrol engine. In the new Santro, this engine is expected to be even more fuel-efficient, with a claimed efficiency figure of 20.1kpl. The new Santro will also get an optional factory-fitted CNG kit. Transmission duties will be handled by a 5-speed manual gearbox. In a first for Hyundai, an automated manual transmission will also be available on the new Santro.

The upcoming Hyundai Santro will go up against the Maruti Suzuki Celerio, but could be priced at a slight premium over its competitor, which is currently priced from Rs 4.21 lakh for the base manual variant to Rs 5.40 lakh for the top-spec AMT trim (ex-showroom, Delhi).