Car maker Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Monday launched its new sedan Elantra at an introductory price of between Rs. 12.5 lakh and Rs. 15.8 lakh, as it looks to revive presence in the executive car segment in the domestic market.
The company which had earlier planned to set up a diesel engine manufacturing plant at its Chennai facility said it has delayed the project due to lack of clarity of government policy on fixing of diesel and petrol prices.
“The new Elantra was launched in the US in 2011 and it has received overwhelming response worldwide. We are confident that in India also this will be a success,” Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) Managing Director and CEO BS Seo told reporters in New Delhi.
The new Elantra is available in both petrol and diesel versions. While the petrol variant is powered by an 1.8 litre engine, the diesel option has an engine capacity of 1.6 litres.
While the petrol variant is available at a price between Rs 12.51-14.74 lakh, the diesel option is available at Rs 12.91-15.85 lakh.
“Coming to the executive segment, the new Elantra completes our line up in India,” Mr. Seo said.
Although the market conditions in India are currently challenging, it is a temporary situation and the company believes in the long term potential of the market, he added.
“We will continue to try new products in the Indian market,” Mr. Seo said.
When asked about setting up of the diesel engine manufacturing plant in India, HMIL National Sales Vice President Rakesh Srivastava said: “We are still studying it.
We are looking at some clarity on the policy front regarding the petrol and diesel prices and we will take a decision in due course”.
Commenting on the sales target for the new Elantra, Srivastava said the market size is about 2,800 units per month and “we aspire to be number one in this segment”.
The company had stopped sales of the earlier version of Elantra in India in August 2007. It has invested Rs 200 crore on the new Elantra and it’s manufacturing in India.
