India has for long been a booming market for high-hauling vehicles. The SUV segment is one of the most sought-after one in the country and eyeing the same, new entrant such as MG Motor and Kia have tapped in with their own offerings as an opening act on the Indian turf. Amidst a prolonged slowdown in the industry, the SUV segment continued to record impressive sales, and minimum loss. New entrants such a the Hector and Seltos set new benchmarks to be one of the top-10 best-selling cars in the country. Hence, here is a list of SUVs and MPVs that created a marque this year.
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Kia Seltos
Kia Seltos is the most famous and highest-selling mid-SUV of 2019 with number touching 14,000 units a month. Kia Seltos was launched at Rs 9.69 Lakh and offers connectivity and many first in segment features. Under the hood, it hosts the 3rd generation Smartstream engine that comes in three variants: 1.5 Petrol, 1.5 Diesel and the first in segment 1.4 Turbo Petrol. The engines will be mated to 3 automatic transmission options – 7DCT, IVT, and 6 AT along with 6-speed manual transmission.
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MG Hector
Competing against the Tata Harrier and Kia Seltos is the MG Hector, the large SUV from the house of Morris Garages, the iconic British brand now owned by SAIC. The Hector was launched at an attractive price of Rs 12.18 lakh. The MG Hector can be availed in both petrol and diesel guise. The diesel engine produces 170hp and 350Nm of peak torque. The diesel variant is available with only available with a six-speed manual transmission. In addition to this, MG also offers an optional 48V mild-hybrid tech that adds 20 Nm to the existing torque figures.
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Maruti Suzuki XL6
Maruti Suzuki launched two MPVs back to back, the all-new Ertiga and the Ertiga based XL6 premium MPV, which is a 6-seater version of the former and is being sold via the Nexa range of dealerships. In terms of mechanicals, the XL6 comes with a 1.5-litre petrol engine with SHVS technology that produces 103bhp and 138Nm of torque. This engine is available with a five-speed manual transmission and a four-speed automatic transmission.
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Renault Triber
Another MPV in the market that created a buzz with its pricing and packaging is the Renault Triber. The Triber is India’s first modular MPV with removable third-row seating and is priced at Rs 4.95 Lakh. The Renault Triber derives the same engine from the Kwid which means under the hood is a 1.0-litre petrol engine capable of churning out 71 bhp at 6250 rpm and 96 Nm at 3500 rpm. Transmission options include a 5-speed manual and an automated manual transmission (AMT) unit.
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Hyundai Venue
Lastly, Hyundai launched the Venue compact SUV in India as a competitor to Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and successfully managed to outsell it. The Venue is currently the most sold SUV of India and starts at Rs 6.50 Lakh. The Hyundai Venue SUV will come with Hyundai’s first model in India to offer in-house developed 7-Speed and an automatic gearbox with DCT technology. The Venue also gets 6-speed and 5-speed manual transmissions. Another first from Hyundai is the 1.0-Litre Kappa Turbocharged GDI Petrol Engine. Apart from this, the Brezza rival will also get the 1.2-litre Kappa Petrol and 1.4 L Diesel Engine.