2020 Hyundai Venue Sport launched with iMT gearbox, manual without a clutch pedal

Keeping up with their track record of offering best-in-class features, Hyundai has now upped the game with their Venue compact-SUV. The Hyundai Venue sub-4 metre SUV now comes with an industry first Intelligent Manual Transmission or iMT in a new Sport variant. The new iMT gearbox will offer a clutch-free driving experience on the manual gearbox, which is a first for the Indian car buyer to experience. This is unlike an AMT gearbox as one would still make manual gear changes.

2020 Hyundai Venue Price List:

• 1.0L T-GDI SX iMT – INR 9,99,990
• 1.0L, T-GDI SX(O) iMT – INR 11,08,500
• 1.0L T-GDI Sport SX iMT – INR 10,20,360
• 1.0L T-GDI Sport SX(O) iMT – INR 11,20,900
• 1.0L T-GDI Sport SX+ DCT – INR 11,58,400
• 1.5L U2 CRDi SX – INR 10,30,700
• 1.5L U2 CRDi SX(O) – INR 11,52,700
• 1.2L Kappa 5MT – INR 8,31,900

As you can notice, the new iMT gearbox is available on the SX & SX(O) trims of the Hyundai Venue. Apart from that, the Sport variant has been made available for all engine options of the popular compact-SUV. A quick recap on the engines, the Hyundai Venue comes with a 1.0L, turbocharged, 3-cylinder petrol motor which produces 120 PS of power and 17.5 kgm of torque and this motor is now available with either a iMT or 7-speed DCT gearbox. The 1.5L, U2 CRDi diesel motor produces 100 PS of power and 24.5 kgm of torque matched to a 6-speed manual gearbox. The 1.2L Kappa petrol motor is available only with a 5-speed manual gearbox.

How does the Hyundai Venue iMT function? This new type of gearbox on the Hyundai Venue makes use of a transmission Gear Shift or TGS lever with an intentional sensor, hydraulic actuator and a transmission control unit (TCU). The system tries to offer the fun and engagement of a manual gearbox along with offering the convenience of a clutch-free drive. When the driver tries to make a gear shift, the TCU receives a signal from the TGS lever intention sensor. Then the TCU sends a signal to the hydraulic actuator which causes hydraulic pressure. This later connects to the clutch tube and sending the pressure to the concentric slave cylinder (CSC). The CSC then uses the hydraulic pressure to operate the clutch and pressure plates and as a result engages and disengages the clutch. While doing this, which might sound like a similar process to a manual gearbox, the driver is only operating the gear lever and not pressing the clutch. Hence the term, INTELLIGENT MANUAL TRANSMISSION.

The Hyundai Venue Sport comes with additional features such as paddle shifts on the turbo-petrol 7-Speed DCT variant, dual tone paint options, sport badging, red painted brake calipers, gloss black front grille, dark grey bumper garnish, dark grey roof rails, red accents on wheel arches and side moulding, D-Cut steering wheel with red contrast stitching, sport pedals, dark grey interior upholstery, red accents on gear knob and red stitching + piping on the interior upholstery. The Hyundai Venue Sport will be offered in a new dual tone grey + black paint option and a dual tone white + black option.