Hyundai Elite i20 garners 12,000 bookings since launch

Hyundai has revealed that the Elite i20 has registered more than 12,000 bookings, in less than 20 days of its launch. The Elite i20 has accomplished this feat despite facing some stiff competition from the recently updated B+ segment hatchbacks- the Volkswagen Polo and the Fiat Punto Evo. While the Hyundai i20 always managed to accumulate decent numbers, the Elite i20 seems to have eclipsed its predecessor in terms of its performance in the domestic market.

The Elite i20 is available with two engine options- a 1.2-litre Kappa petrol and a 1.4-litre CRDI diesel. While the former produces 82bhp and 115Nm of torque, the torquey diesel unit churns out 89bhp and 220Nm of torque. While the earlier i20 used to get a 1.4-litre petrol variant with an automatic gearbox, Hyundai plans to add this option in the Elite i20 later.

Like the previous car, the Elite i20 is a global car and is quite popular in the European markets too. The car has been designed along the lines of Hyundai’s popular ‘fluidic 2.0’ design philosophy and the European influence is clearly visible. It gets funky detailing throughout the body with a rather large design for the headlamp and tail lamp assembly. The length of the car has been kept under four-metre to avail the government’s excise concessions, though the European-spec car measures well over four-metres.

Hyundai discontinued the i20 in India at a time when it was still doing over 3,000 units in monthly sales. As India is a big export hub for Hyundai, the decision to launch the new Elite i20 in India was mostly driven by the necessity to restructure their assembly line, at their facility in Chennai. And going by the numbers the Elite i20 has garnered in India so far, this decision has definitely worked in favour of the Korean manufacturer.