Hyundai Motors India Limited (HMIL) is a subsidiary of the Korean automobile manufacturing firm the Hyundai Motor Company. The Koreans know the Indian conditions well and HMIL is the second largest carmaker in India. Right from the Santro (launched in 1998), to the recently launched Xcent, the Korean cars have won the Indian hearts. The Tucson will be the next Hyundai car to be launched in India in 2014.
The Hyundai Tucson is a compact SUV produced by Hyundai Motors since 2004 in India. Launched in 2005, the first generation was discontinued in 2010. A face lifted version is expected in 2014 itself to take full advantage of the growing Indian SUV market.
The new Tucson will be offered in only diesel, with two versions of the engines; a 1.6-liter engine with 128 PS power and 260 NM torque and another 2-liter engine with 140 PS power and 320 NM torque. The transmission will be a six-speed manual or automatic. 1.6-l version will have front wheel drive. The 2-l engines will have a four-wheel drive. Normal drive will be on the front wheels with the drive shifting to the rear when the front wheels slip. Mileage expected is around 9.7 kmpl to 12.6 kmpl.
The exterior will have a new look designed according to the fluidic design. The small grille with the logo, the trapezoidal main grille, the elongated Xenon headlamps and the body colored bumper with fog lamps will give a dynamic stance to the car. The sides will have steel ORVMs with turn indicators, roof railings, a sunroof (optional) and star shaped wheel spokes. A stooping tailgate, a spoiler and a set of well-designed tail lamps will add beauty at the rear.
The interior of the Tucson is expected to be spacious along with a boot space of around 590 liters. An automatic AC, a music system having 160 w power with Aux-in and USB ports, fabric seat covers (leather optional) and a navigation system with touch screen can be expected inside. The safety features may include front, side and curtain air bags for front passengers, a rear-parking sensor, electronic stability control, a hill start assists, a downhill brake control, a cruise control and auto headlights.
The new Tucson will be longer than the earlier version with the dimensions of 4410 mm length, 1820 mm width and 1660 mm height. The suspension will be a McPherson type with coil springs at the front and two-link coil spring type at the rear.
The price of the Tucson is expected to be around 17 lakh rupees for the base variant. Tough competition is expected from the SUVs like Ford EcoSport, the Mahindra XUV 500 and the Renault Duster.
