Hyundai recently launched one of the most awaited cars on October 23, 2018. Of course, that car is the beloved Santro, especially in India Market. Santro has been loved by the mass of people in India but also Hyundai decided to discontinue the previous version of Santro in 2015. But Hyundai finds out that its clients are still loving the Santro. So, it decided to launch the new car with the same name - Santro. So, now let's find out either this new Santro is the same as the old one or either it is better or worse. Is it really a good idea to purchase the Hyundai Santro 2018 or are there other better alternatives? Let's find out.
We don't know about you but lookswise we feel the old one was better than the new version of the Santro.
The new Santro looks like the mixed of 3 Hyundai products and those are i10, Eon and i20. It looks like Hyundai try a lot to make a unique look but end up with something similar to its other models.
Sorry Hyundai, but we were expecting the better head-turning look of Hyundai Santro because Santro is not alone now and it has to compete with Datsun Redi-Go, Renault Kwid, Tata Tiago, Wagan-R, Celerio and so on. So, lookswise we don't feel Santro is a masterpiece, however, it is also not bad as well. Definitely different people like different looks. So, please use the comment section below and let us know what do you think about the looks of new Santro.
The build-up quality of new Santro can be considered well enough for the car in this segment and price.
However, the interior of new Santro looks good and it's also spacious compare with its dimension.
The interior build-up quality looks good compared with the material it has used. The only thing we don't like is the power window operating switches which are now not available on doors but in the middle just after the gear shift knob compartment. It seems a little bit difficult for everyone to reach the power window switches there. It seems Hyundai did this to cut some cost so that it can compete with its rival in the price.
Many people used to like Hyundai Santro also due to its ground clearance. The ground clearance of the previous version of Hyundai Santro was 172 mm but now it is only 160 mm. Well, if we consider safety, then low ground clearance is definitely more stable than the higher one but in the same time, lower ground clearance may not attract the consumers especially in India which is the main target market of Hyundai Santro. Since the rivals of Santro are providing higher ground clearance, maybe Hyundai will have some difficulty to compete in the market with only 160 mm ground clearance. But, 160 mm is not bad ground clearance for small size vehicle like Hyundai Santro which dimension is 3,610 mm in length, 1,645 mm in width and 1,560 mm in height. However, Indian consumer mostly prefers at least 165 mm ground clearance in hatchbacks.
The new Santro comes with 1.1-litre (1086 cc) 4-cylinder petrol engine producing a power of 68 bhp. You can find a 5-speed manual or 5-speed automatic gearbox options giving a fuel efficiency of 20.3 km/l. Considering the dimension of Santro, 1.1-liter petrol engine with 68 bhp is definitely gonna give the smooth and powerful ride. Since it is Hyundai, we don't think we need to doubt on its engine quality. However, sometime Hyundai put low power engine in a heavy body due to which we can feel some turbo lag in some of its models but we don't think that gonna happen in Santro because the 1.1-liter engine with 68 bhp seems enough according to the car's size.
The dimension of Santro Xing 2015 was 3,565 mm in length, 1,525 mm in width and 1,590 mm in height with a ground clearance 172 mm, kerb weight 820 kg and 1086 cc petrol engine.
So, comparing with old Santro, new Santro is bigger in length by 45 mm, in width by 120 mm but lesser 30 mm in height. Although there is not so much big difference in the dimension of old and new Santro, however, having bigger width and length with lesser ground clearance may disappoint lots of Santro lover who used to like it due to the tall boy look with good ground clearance. But, giving an extra length and width with lesser ground clearance, definitely, make it safer at least according to the body roll safety of vehicle than the old Santro. But, having a bigger body with the same engine power of old Santro may cause little negligible power lag, but definitely, it is not too much difference, so we think it will be well enough for pick-up power lover.
We still don't know the kerb weight of new Santro as the company hasn't revealed it. But, according to the lots of reviewers, it seems the build up quality of Tata Tiago is better than Santro 2018 which price is almost the same. But, comparing with other cars in this segment and price range, especially Maruti Suzuki products, its body strength is definitely well enough as well as its interior looks more premium.
Although new Santro failed to provide the head-turning look from outside, the interior of new Santro is definitely premium one in this segment.
Now, let's compare it with other cars in India in the same price range which gonna be from 3.9 lakh to 5.65 lakh ex-showroom price in India since India is its main market.
Hyundai Santro Versus Maruti Alto
Well, Maruti Alto comes around 2.53 to 3.8 lakh Indian Rupees, so we don't think it is well enough to compare Santro with Alto. But, if you consider the safety especially the body strength of the vehicle then definitely Santro is worth to pay extra bucks over Maruti Alto.
Hyundai Santro Versus Renault Kwid
Once again, according to the safety, Hyundai Santro is a winner here. The build-up quality of Renault Kwid is not so good, however, not so bad as well. So, if you are looking for boxy tall boy SUV look in this price range, then definitely Renault is the winner. But, if you are looking for a safe car with loaded feature and premium interior feeling, then definitely Santro is the winner. You will also feel power lag in Renault Kwid compare with Santro.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Maruti Alto K10
The price range Maruti Alto K10 is almost the same as Santro but Santro clearly wins Maruti Alto K10 in build quality and safety measures. So, definitely, Santro is a winner here. But, if you are mileage lover, you can still stick with Maruti Alto K10 but we don't think it is a good idea to risk your body just to save few milage bucks. Yes, people will say Maruti has a good service network but so do Hyundai has and it is not that you must have a service center next to your home.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Hyundai Eon
Santro definitely wins its own brother Eon according to safety, build quality and features. We think Hyundai will now give more focus on Santro and have maximum chance that Hyundai will discontinue making Eon. So, we don't think it's a good idea to purchase Eon.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Datsun Go or Datsun Redi-Go or Datsun Go Plus
Santro definitely wins over body build-up quality of Datsun Go or Go Plus or Redi-Go. The service network of Hyundai is much better than Datsun and the resale value of Santro definitely gonna be much higher than Datsun Go or Go Plus or Redi-Go, so definitely Santro is a winner here. Only the outside look of Datsun Redi-Go is better than Santro, other than that, Santro wins Redi-Go or Go or Go Plus in every aspect. If you only want to go after the looks, then even you have Renault Kwid or Mahindra KUV100 than Redi-Go.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Maruti Suzuki Swift
Although Maruti Suzuki Swift is expensive than Santro, still Santro wins Maruti Suzuki Swift over body build up quality as well as interior material quality. The engine quality of Swift and Santro both are good. Santro also feels premium from inside same as Swift. So, why pay more money for Swift when Santro is safer?
Hyundai Santro Vs. Maruti Suzuki Celerio or Wagon R
Whenever we compare Santro with Maruti Suzuki's cars in the same price range, Santro always wins the race due to the build up quality. So, once again Santro is a winner here.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Mahindra KUV100
The performance wise Hyundai Santro wins Mahindra KUV as Santro gives you more powerful engine pick-up than Mahindra KUV. But, the build-up quality of Mahindra KUV is not bad at all. However, if we consider the dimension, then definitely Santro gonna have less body roll than Mahindra KUV, so once again Santro is safe here. But, the looks of Mahindra KUV beats Santro in a high margin. So, it's up to you to decide either you want to have Santro or Mahindra KUV. But, considering safety, it's better to go for Santro.
Hyundai Santro Vs. Tata Tiago
Tata Tiago comes in the same price range of Santro with the same kind of premium interior feel. However, if you check the body build quality, then Tata Tiago is definitely a winner here. The dimension of Tata Tiago is 3,746 mm in length, 1,647 mm in width, 1,535 mm in height which means Tata Tiago is 136 mm longer, only 2 mm wider (almost same) than Santro. However, Santro is 25 mm taller than Tata Tiago.
We don't know about you, but we feel Tata Tiago looks more premium than Santro from outside. However, inside both give the same premium feel. So, according to the build-up quality and lookswise, Tata Tiago is definitely the winner in this price range of car segment. Total Tiago claims ARAI Mileage of 23.84 kmpl even when it has 1199 cc petrol engine whereas Santro claims 20.3 kmpl ARAI Mileage with its 1086 cc petrol engine. So, considering mileage, still, Tata Tiago wins the race.
However, the resale value of Santro is definitely gonna win the race because people believe Hyundai more than Tata due to some dull models of Tata previously. But, nowadays, it seems Tata has improved a lot especially with its Tata Tiago and Tata Nexon models.
So, if you want the resale value car which cost 3.9 to 5.65 lakh, then definitely you can choose Santro. But, if you don't care the resale value, instead, the build quality of the vehicle, if you want the car which is value for money, then definitely Tata Tiago is the best one in this price range. Since the new models of Tata are good, especially Tiago and Nexon and they are selling those models in high volume every month, so there is also a high chance that the resale value of these Tata products will be good. So, according to us, in this price range, Tata Tiago is the first one and Hyundai Santro is the second one.
We love to hear your thoughts about New Santro and also about its rival. We always love to have a conversation with you. So, please feel free to leave your comment below. We will be more than happy to hear from you.
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Picture Credits:-
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http://www.hyundai.com
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https://www.flickr.com
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https://www.cardekho.com
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