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Hyundai Santro

Hyundai Santro is a premium 5-seater hatchback car which has garnered appreciation for its performance and looks. This car was the first vehicle launched by Hyundai Motors India Limited and is credited with the success of company in the country. It ran on a petrol engine which produces maximum displacement of 1086 cc. The low pricing of the Hyundai Santro turned out to be the biggest advantage of this car. This vehicle was priced between Rs. 3.5 and 4.6 Lacs, which is quite less when compared to other cars in this segment. Since launch, Hyundai Santro car and its successor, Santro Xing, have given tough competition to the likes of Maruti Suzuki A-Star, Tata Indica Xeta and Chevrolet Spark.

Launch History

Hyundai Motor India Limited launched its Hyundai Santro in the year 1998 in the Indian market. This car proved as a best-seller during the early years of its launch. Later, the company came up with the launch of its successor, the Santro Xing which proved to be equally effective for the company.

Hyundai Santro Variants

Pricing

The new Hyundai Santro was launched in the country with its 9 variants, with slight differences in the pricing of each variant. The LPG variants have been priced little higher than the petrol ones. The Hyundai Santro used to be available within the price range of Rs. 3.5 to 4.6 Lacs.

Review

Hyundai Santro has been termed as a good buy by auto experts and customers alike. The car delivers good performance and renders smooth and comfortable driving experience. In terms of fuel economy, the vehicle delivered good mileage, which made it a tough competitor in the market at the time of its launch. The use of active intelligence technology also proved effective in terms of power and fuel efficiency, thus earning it many fans in the market.

Used Car Market

The Hyundai Santro proved to be a decent car in the hatchback segment. Its engine performance was quite good and looks were also impressive. Owing to this, used Santro cars are heavily demanded in the domestic car market. Therefore, in spite of its discontinuation, the car is still readily available in the used car market.

Specifications

The standard Hyundai Santro car was powered by a 1086 cc petrol engine and its variants also possessed similar engine configurations. The maximum power output of the vehicle was measured as 63 hp, whereas the torque generation capacity of the vehicle was 115 Nm. LPG power had been kept optional in the LPG variants of this car, so that the drivers can switch to petrol as per their requirements.

Exterior

Exterior Appearance

The company had kept the exteriors of Hyundai Santro very attractive, with a tall boy style and vibrant colours. In the front, the car sported big, pearl-shaped headlights, whereas the tail-gate is spacious and impressive. The space in the tailboard had been of considerable advantage, as despite the presence of fuel cylinder, the space can be freely utilised. Overall, the Hyundai Santro looks tall due to its crescent-shaped roof.

Exterior Measurements

Santro car was one of the most spacious cars in the market at the time of its launch due to its generous exteriors. Given below are the measurements of this car:

Length	3565 mm
Width	1525 mm
Height	1590 mm

Interior

Interior Appearance

The company has kept the interiors of the Hyundai Santro quite elegant, though a few drawbacks did exist in the vehicle. The hazard signal was placed near the air-conditioning panel and underneath it, comes the CD player. Other standard features such as leather upholstery, power windows and spaciousness are the highlighting things of the interiors. In the LPG variants, there lies the converting switch on the dashboard which makes a lot easier for the driver to switch on to petrol and LPG as per the requirement. In the front panel, the dashboard was absent, which made the front panel seem a little empty.

Interior Comfort

Regarding the driving comfort of this car, Hyundai Santro had proved a satisfactory vehicle. Inside, some of its variants possessed features like air-conditioning and power windows, which were considered luxurious at the time of its debut. According to reviews, the seats were not very comfortable, which was considered a drawback of the Hyundai Santro. The vehicle comes with standard features which do not contribute significantly regarding towards enhancing its comfort levels. Therefore, Santro was termed average by users in terms of comfort, though additional accessories compensated for the same to an extent.

Interior Measurements

Owing to its tall boy design, the Santro was quite spacious, with 218 litres of boot space. Apart from that, it also had sufficient legroom, enough headroom and could seat up to five passengers quite easily.

Mileage, Average and Fuel economy

The Hyundai Santro had been termed as a good buy in terms of fuel economy upon launch. The AC model delivered decent mileage of 10-12 kmpl on city roads and 16-17 kmpl on highways.

On-road Drive

The Hyundai Santro was powered by a 1086 cc petrol engine that ran on active intelligence technology. This ensured that the car was able to deliver powerful performance on city roads and highways. The interiors were also quite spacious which adds to the comfort level of the car.

Power

The 5-seater Hyundai Santro ran on a 1086 cc petrol engine that produced maximum power output of 63 hp. The engine configuration of all the variants of Hyundai Santro had been kept the same, so the power output was also the same in each model plying on Indian roads.

Acceleration and Pick-up

The first hatchback launched by Hyundai in India was powered by a petrol engine that was capable enough to produce 63 hp power. This much power ensured decent acceleration in the drive of the Hyundai Santro and enabled the car to zoom from 0 to 60 kmph without any hiccups.

Safety and Security

Regarding the safety of the car, the Hyundai Santro comes packed with the requisite features that fit this purpose. Prominent safety features such as central locking and anti-lock braking system (ABS) proved effective in ensuring the safety of passengers and vehicles.

Comfort and Convenience

The interiors of the Hyundai Santro possessed certain features which made the drive of the Hyundai Santro quite comfortable. Its plush seats and ample legroom added to the comfort factor and though there was scope for improvement, it was deemed suitable by all customers. Moreover, the manual transmission in the vehicle allowed smooth switching of gears, thus render utmost convenience to the driver.

Wheels and Suspension

Hyundai Santro boasted of 13 inch wheels that were provided with full wheel covers. Moreover, alloys were provided as additional accessories in higher priced variants, which added to the look of this popular car. Its suspension was considerably superior as compared to other cars present in the market at the time of its launch, such as Maruti Suzuki Zen.

Stereo and Accessories

In order to provide entertainment during the drive, the dashboard of Santro car consisted of an excellent music player. The stereo system was mounted on the lower side of the dashboard and was easily accessible to the passengers.

Dealers

Hyundai has established itself as a major brand in the Indian auto market ever since launching Santro. This has resulted in a country-wide dealership network in India, with 240 dealers selling Hyundai cars across 168 cities. Covering all metropolitan cities, Hyundai has expanded itself to various states, such as Rajasthan, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and the North-Eastern states of India.

Company Quotes

On the eve of the launch of Hyundai Santro, President of Hyundai Motors, Mr B.V.R. Subbu had said "We will sell the 1.0-litre car for the export markets as well. Hyundai Motor India will ultimately become the global sourcing base for the Santro car.” He had also added "The basic design will more or less remain the same. There is no question of changing or replacing it with a new model.”

On this, managing director of Hyundai Motors, Y.S Kim stated ”the company would invest Rs. 300 crores to hike production capacity in the next fiscal and it would be called 'Santro Zip Plus', the car would sport ex-showroom Delhi prices of Rs. 3.35 Lacs (LE version), Rs. 3.51 Lacs (LP), Rs. 3.77 Lacs (LS) and Rs. 4.0 Lacs (GS), respectively.”

Competitor Analysis

There are many competitors of the Hyundai Santro in the Indian market. Coming up at the first place is the Maruti Suzuki A-Star, the first environment friendly car launched under the A-segment of Maruti. The vehicle is powered by a 3-cylinder, KB series petrol engine that delivers powerful on-road performance. The displacement of the Suzuki A-Star is similar to that of the Santro, thus making it a tough competitor for Hyundai's first vehicle in the market. The A-Star is priced between Rs. 3.4 and 4.3 Lacs, which is quite similar to the original pricing of Hyundai Santro, though its resale value will be much lesser.

The second contender against Hyundai Santro is the Tata Indica Xeta. The all new Xeta runs on a highly advanced MPFI petrol engine which renders instant pickup in the drive of the vehicle. The torque generation of Indica Xeta is 121 Nm, which makes Xeta a smoother vehicle than Santro. The pricing can be an advantage for Xeta as this car is priced little less than the Hyundai Santro.

The third one coming in the line is the all new Chevrolet Spark. This 5-seater hatchback model is powered by a 1.0 L, 8 V, SOHC smart-tic petrol engine which produces maximum displacement of 995 cc. The company launched the Chevy Spark in five variants, with all of them being priced in the range of Rs. 3.19 to 4.24 Lacs. Again, pricing can be a favouring factor for buyers, as Hyundai Santo’s resale value will be lesser than the current price of Spark.

LPG/CNG Version

Hyundai had introduced the LPG Versions of its Hyundai Santro in the Indian car market. The LPG variants were named Hyundai Santro LPG GL, Santro LPG GL (M), Santro LPG GLS and Santro LPG GLS (M). All variants consisted of an option of switching to petrol and LPG as per the requirement of the driver.

Pros

The pros of Hyundai Santro can be its good engine performance, decent pickup, efficient braking system and fuel economy.

Cons

The major drawbacks of the Hyundai Santro can be its poor after sales value and insufficient comfort level for the passengers.

Conclusion

Hyundai Santro was a premium 5-seater hatchback car which had been termed good in terms of engine performance. Including the LPG variants, the car was available locally in a total of 9 variants. The pricing had also been kept reasonable, within the price bracket of Rs. 3.5 to 4.6 Lacs.