Hyundai Santro launched in all-new avatar at introductory starting price of Rs 3.89 lakh

The much-awaited Santro mostly shares only the name with the erstwhile model and now comes with all-new exteriors, auto transmission option and a host of features on the inside. The company says it has received 23,500 pre-bookings.

New Delhi: Santro, the car which launched and propelled Hyundai in India in and after 1998, was re-launched in a completely new package on Tuesday at a starting price of Rs 3.89 lakh (introductory, ex showroom).

Santro has miniscule little in terms of similarities with the erstwhile model and now gets a complete design change coupled with modern features – both on the inside as well as on the outside. In fact, it is fair to say that it only shares the name badging with the previous model it is being linked to while sporting an all-new face featuring swept-back headlights, wide front grille, flared wheel arches, 14-inch wheels with steel rims, and taillights at the tip of the rear on either side. It has a tall-boy appearance even if that is not immediately noticeable, and is 45mm longer with a wheelbase of 3610mm.

While the car does not get LED DRLs and alloys, it is feature-packed on the inside with a large infotainment unit, rear-parking sensors with camera, steering-mounted controls for audio and electrically-adjustable ORVMs.

The new Santro is powered by a 1.1-litre four-cylinder petrol engine only but there is an option for automatic as well. It can churn out 68bhp of power and 99Nm of torque  with a claimed fuel efficiency of 20.3kmpl.

There are five variants to choose from – Dlite, Era, Magna, Sportz and Asta. The auto option though is only in Magna and Sportz while there is the option of company-fitted CNG in manual variants of Magna and Sportz. The CNG variants will have a max power output of 58bhp and max torque rating of 84Nm. Fuel efficiency figures are claimed to be 30.5km per kg.

The car is available in seven colour options – Star Dust, Marina Blue, Fiery Red, Polar White, Imperial Beige, Typhoon Silver and Diana Green.

Hyundai is betting big once again with the 2018 Santro and has managed to create quite a buzz for it in the days leading up to the launch. The prices (full list below) are introductory and for the first 50,000 bookings only. On Sunday, the company said it had already received 14,000 bookings. With the new Santro going up against the likes of Renault Kwid and Maruti Suzuki Celerio, the B-segment war is all set to flare up this festive season.

Prices (ex showroom, introductory):

Dlite: Rs 3.89 lakh

Era: Rs 4.24 lakh

Magna: Rs 4.57 lakh

Sportz: Rs 4.99 lakh

Asta: Rs 5.45 lakh

Magna Auto: Rs 5.18 lakh

Sportz Auto: Rs 5.46 lakh

Magna CNG: Rs 5.23 lakh

Sportz CNG: RS 5.26 lakh