India’s second-largest carmaker, Hyundai Motor India has launched the sixth generation Verna at INR 10,89,900. The company is expecting to double the sales of Verna this year with advanced new features such as ADAS and HVAC touch panel switchable with infotainment controls.
Tarun Garg, Chief Operating Officer of Hyundai Motor India, said, “In the past couple of years we have seen multiple launches in the SUV segment but due to a lack of products in the sedan segment we haven’t seen much traction. However, as Indians, we have always aspired for a sedan or bigger car.”
With new features and futuristic design, the company is confident that it can double the sales of Verna this year as it has received 8,000 bookings in one month. Verna has loyal customers and 41% of them are repeat buyers of Verna, he said. The company sold 19,000 units of Verna in 2022. According to experts, the launch of Verna is very crucial for Hyundai Motor India to maintain the lead over Tata Motors which doesn’t have a mid-size sedan in its product portfolio.
Hyundai Verna will compete with the likes of Honda City, Skoda Slavia and Volkswagen Virtus. The mid-size sedan segment grew by 10.8% to 4,12,000 units in 2022 compared to 296,000 units in 2019, as per the industry data. The primary reason behind the increase in sales of midsize sedans is the introduction of two new products – Volkswagen Virtus and Skoda Slavia. Moreover, the segment leader has also re-introduced Honda City with hybrid technology and ADAS features.
Garg said, with the introduction of the new Verna, the mid-size sedan is expected to expand as the hatchback segment is shrinking and a lot of customers will enter this segment. He further added that overall the customers are now moving up the ladder they are opting for more aspirational higher variants and they are also not ready to compromise on features. Hyundai Verna comes with a host of features such as an 8-speaker Bose premium audio system, three drive modes – Eco, Normal and Sport, ventilated front seats, an electric sunroof, and electronic parking brake.