The Aura, successor to the Xcent, will be available with three engines and three fuel options (petrol, diesel and CNG). It will be the only compact sedan in India to be equipped with a BS-VI Diesel engine. The base diesel version is priced at Rs 7.73 lakh.
Besides the Dzire, the Aura will compete against the Honda Amaze, Tata Tigor, Tata Zest and the Ford Aspire. The 1-litre petrol engine generating 100ps of peak power will be the flagship variant on the Aura while the 1.2-litre petrol and diesel have been borrowed from the Xcent. The 1.litre is priced at Rs 8.54 lakh.
Hyundai, the country's second-largest carmaker, has offered automatic manual transmission (AMT) on both the 1.2-litre engines. The petrol 1.2-litre has claimed ARAI mileage of 20.5 km per litre while the 1.2-litre diesel has a claimed mileage of 25.35 km per litre.
The Aura is nearly identical to the Xcent in dimensions but has a slightly longer wheelbase. The Xcent became hugely popular in the commercial space with owners using it under Ola and Uber.
For comfort and convenience, Hyundai has added a number of features. Touch screen infotainment system, Arkamys sound system, wireless mobile charging, rearview monitor, audio remote start phone app, and air curtain cruise control are some of the creature comforts.
The touchscreen system is 20.25 cm with smartphone connectivity (Android Auto and Apple Car Play). It has a 13.46 cm digital speedometer, multi-function display and wireless charger.
The launch comes at a time when demand for compact sedans has softened due to consumers preference of small and mid-sized sports utility vehicles (SUVs). Volumes of compact sedans have dipped to less than 25,000 a month from around 40,000 a month.
The launch is also crucial as market leader Maruti signalled the end of small Diesel engines. The Dzire, with a 1.3-litre BS-IV Diesel engine, will not be upgraded to BS-VI standards after April 1.
Hyundai and Honda have agreed to continue offering Diesel engines across their portfolio. Presently the Dzire has a share of 75 percent if the compact sedan segment.
For the first time, compact SUVs such as the Mahindra XUV300, Maruti Suzuki Brezza, Tata Nexon and Hyundai Venue beat volumes of compact sedans on an average monthly basis this year.
This is despite the fact that the average price of a compact SUV is higher than the compact sedan by Rs 80,000 to Rs 1.2 lakh.
