Hyundai was spotted testing the current gen i30 hatchback on the outskirts of Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The Korean carmaker might be component testing the Elantra platform in the i30 guise since a big hatchback like the i30 has no space in the Indian car market at the moment.
Hyundai’s i30 is a European supermini which stretches the four-metre mark and thus won't benefit the hatchback rule in India. It is feature loaded as well with a bigger engine which makes the i30 a very expensive product. Its price tag could stretch into and beyond the C-segment sedan’s territory. So Hyundai might not have any plans to foray in with the i30 right now.
However, Hyundai is a successful player in India with a market share of around 17 per cent. The Korean carmaker took a bold move with the i20 a few years back which spawned the B+ segment in India. With the segment shift, the B+ is now one of the most popular segments of the market. So, Hyundai could possibly do the same gamble with the i30 and introduce it in India on par with the Creta SUV.
And if that is not what Hyundai has in mind at the moment, this test mule could just be a test bed for features or part testing which will benefit expensive Hyundais like the Elantra. The current i30 has been around for a couple of years now in the international markets. It wears the latest design philosophy from the Korean carmaker and is powered by a range of petrol and diesel engines with manual and automatic transmissions. It is loaded to the brim with features and safety equipment compliant to the European standards. It is available in hatchback, styleback and estate body style apart from the hardcore N variant.
