Hyundai Xcent sedan launch on March 12

Hyundai India will launch the new Xcent sedan on March 12. The Grand i10-based compact sedan was unveiled at the Auto Expo last month and is now set to take on the Maruti Suzuki Dzire and the Honda Amaze.

The Xcent is a sub-four metre car designed to take advantage of the tax regulations in India. It is basically a three-box version of the Grand i10; however since Hyundai planned for the sedan from start, it looks the part, unlike the Maruti Dzire. The front design of the Grand i10 and the Xcent is almost identical and the only difference is at the rear.

The interiors of the two cars are also similar; the only addition to the sedan is the automatic climate control. The Xcent will be the first car in its segment to get the rear AC vents. It will be available in both petrol and diesel guise – the petrol unit will be the 1.2-litre engine producing 81bhp and 114Nm of torque. Hyundai has two diesel engine options – the new 1.1-litre engine from the Grand i10 with output of 70bhp and 160Nm of torque and the bigger 1.4-litre engine from the i20 delivering 89bhp and 220Nm of torque. Ideally Hyundai should opt for the bigger engine to compete with the Amaze, but the decision might go in favour of the three-cylinder unit considering the price and efficiency.

We know that Hyundai is working on the diesel AT for a while and in fact the details are mentioned in the brochure of the Grand i10. It will be interesting to see if Hyundai debuts the diesel AT in the sub-four metre segment with this car. The Xcent will be positioned above the Grand i10 and very close to the i20 - it is expected to cannibalize some sales of the i20, but Hyundai should see a growth in the total market share. The Tata Zest and the Ford Figo sedan will join the Xcent in the coming months.

Check our first look video of the Hyundai Xcent