Reports are doing the rounds, that Hyundai will discontinue the Santro hatchback at the end of October 2014.
Hyundai has launched the Santro way back in 1998, as their bread and butter model. Even after 16 years into production, the hatchback manages to sell well over 2,000 units per month. For a car this old, with no bells and whistles, to manage such a sales number speaks volumes about the faith customers have in the brand.
Hyundai has sold over 18 lakh units of the Santro, in domestic as well as export markets. It has successfully taken the fight against competitors for more than a decade, but now, the age has started to show compared to fresh products from global brands entering the Indian automotive scene.
The Santro is powered by a 1.1L, 4-cylinder, SOHC petrol engine producing 63 PS of power and 9.8 Kgm of torque. Mated to a 5-speed manual transmission this engine is far superior to the three-cylinder competition currently outselling the Santro.
If this news is true, the Santro name will be iconic in the books of cars sold and discontinued in India. And later, Hyundai will have a tough time to bring back the Santro name on a new car, given that the predecessor was successful, for 16 years.
Source – 99cars