Hyundai Venue to launch today: What to expect from the new Korean subcompact SUV

The Hyundai Venue is easily one of the most anticipated cars in India and possibly other markets. Unveiled globally at the 2019 New York International Auto Show about a month ago, the new Hyundai Venue is all set for a launch in India later today. What do we know about it so far? It's a subcompact SUV from the popular Korean maker, it's expected to be priced very competitively, and it should come with a slew of connectivity features we haven't seen in cars before. Let's dig a little deeper:

Hyundai Blue Link

Some ten days before the Hyundai Venue was unveiled Hyundai India invited a number of journalists to its testing centre in Faridabad to demonstrate Hyundai Blue Link, the upcoming Venue's party piece. Debuted first in the US in 2012, Blue Link is Hyundai's internet-based connectivity solution for cars. It allows a Hyundai car owner to operate some of the features of their connected Hyundai car using their smartphone. To achieve this, owners will need the Blue Link app.

Using Blue Link, a Hyundai car owner will be able to perform a number of functions remotely using their smartphone. For example, they will be able to turn the car's air conditioner on before the step into it, view analytical data about their driving style, look up destinations and other points of interest on the car's navigation app, etc. The system will work in conjunction with the car's advanced infotainment system, which consists of a large touchscreen display in the middle of the dashboard.

According to Hyundai India, the Blue Link solution comes with a total of thirty-three features, ten of which are India-specific. In the area of safety, Blue Link lets the driver call for immediate assistance using two dedicated buttons on the car’s inside rear-view mirror: SOS and Roadside Assistance. These buttons can be used to call for medical assistance in case of an accident. They can also be used to contact the police or the nearest authorised service centre for breakdowns.

In addition to all of this, the car's infotainment system will also accept voice commands from the user. For example, they will be able to use their voice to find nearby points of interest (like petrol stations and restaurants). They can also make use of Hyundai’s 24-hour customer care service to search for results. To enable all these features in the Blue Link solution, Hyundai India says that it has tied up with various technology partners, including Vodafone Idea (for in-vehicle internet connectivity), AccuWeather (for weather data), SoundHound (for voice recognition), and Hyundai subsidiary Mobis (for developing the infotainment system). Auto enthusiasts will know that MG Motor has a similar feature called iSMART on its upcoming Venue-rival, the MG Hector.

Powertrain and Price

The Hyundai Venue is expected to be launched with three engine options: a 1.0-litre Kappa T-GDI petrol motor, which churns out 120 horsepower; a 1.2-litre petrol motor, which throws out 83 horsepower; and a 1.4-litre diesel motor, which produces 90 horsepower. While the diesel engine will be mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, the two petrol motors will be married to a five-speed manual gearbox. In addition, the 1.0-litre Kappa motor will get a seven-speed automatic DCT (Dual Clutch Transmission) option.

The Hyundai Venue's attractive estimated price tag is one of the reasons it has been so frequently searched for on the internet in the past few months. According to numerous sources online, the Hyundai Venue will start at Rs 8 lakh and go all the way up to Rs 12 lakh. Since nothing has been confirmed yet, we advise you to take this bit of information with a pinch of salt. When on sale, Hyundai's latest subcompact SUV will compete with the likes of the Ford EcoSport, Mahindra XUV300, and Tata Nexon, and the newly launched MG Hector. Hang tight for more news later today.

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Vignesh Giridharan

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