Hyundai plans foray into compact sedan segment with Xcent

Announcing its plans to foray into one of the fastest growth segments of the Indian car market, Hyundai Motor India today unveiled its compact sedan Xcent.
With Xcent, which is slated for a market launch in March, the company is hoping for a positive sales growth this year after witnessing an overall decline of 1.2 per cent at 6.33 lakh units n 2013.
"The Xcent is a world class product developed for the Indian market...Xcent symbolises Hyundai's commitment to Indian customers by offering high standards of quality," Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) Managing Director and CEO Seo told reporters here.

Xcent would be available in two engine options -- petrol and diesel-- but the company has not announced its price yet.
The new car would be competing with the likes of Maruti Suzuki Dzire, Honda Amaze along with Tata Motors' upcoming Zest.
This is the sedan version based on the same platform as the compact car Grand i10, which HMIL had launched in September last year.

"With the Xcent, we are entering one of the fastest growing segments in the Indian car market. Last year, the compact sedan segment grew by 39 per cent at about 24,000 units a month. We want to be a significant player in this segment," HMIL Senior Vice President Rakesh Srivastava said.

With this new model, the company will complete its portfolio in the sedan segment, from entry level sub-four metre to the premium executive.
"This year we believe we will have a positive growth. The new model will play its part and we will also grow in the compact car segment as our Grand i10 is also doing well, clocking about 10,000 units a month," Srivastava said.
He said the company has a total production capacity of 6.75 lakh units annually at present and the aim would be to utilise it fully.
When asked if the company would make fresh investments for adding capacity on a new plant, he said:"We would like to watch the market this year before we decide. We have sufficient capacity.."

When asked if the Xcent will be exported, Srivastava said: "We will eventually but our primary focus is the Indian market."
This new model is among the four new models that the company plans to launch in the next two years, including a compact sports utility vehicle (SUV), to enhance its position in the market.
Yesterday, Tata Motors and Ford also unveiled compact sedans Zest and Figo Concept respectively to cater to the segment.