The Korean carmaker, Hyundai is soon going to offer an automatic transmission(AT) option on the lower trim variants of the Verna 1.6 diesel; at present, the four-speed automatic is available only on the top-end SX (O) trim. The company says dealers have been getting many enquiries from prospective Verna customers for a cheaper diesel automatic.
The automatic Verna diesel accounts for 10 percent of the Verna’s overall sales, and Hyundai wants to increase this to as much as 25 percent after the new variant is introduced. The price difference between the top-end automatic and manual variants of the 1.6 diesel Verna is approximately Rs 75,000, and we expect a similar price difference between the respective lower variants.
The Verna is still the only car in its segment to offer a diesel engine with an automatic gearbox, and the addition of cheaper auto variants will only increase its popularity among buyers looking for an affordable diesel automatic saloon.
Hyundai India has also recently started offering a reversing camera as a standard fitment on the Verna, even on the base variants, to push sales. The other reason why this standard reverse camera is being offered in all variants, is to remove the complexity in the production process and all the Verna’s will have the same rear view mirror.
This again makes Hyundai Verna, the only car in the segment which is offering the reverse camera as standard equipment. As there is no clarity on the prices of the new models with reverse camera but expectations are that the price will be hiked by Rs. 17,000 to Rs. 20,000. It is currently the best-selling car in its segment with sales figures having touched 27,533 units in the last six months.
Also see – Hyundai reduces down the waiting period for Verna and i20
