Hyundai’s latest iteration of its mid-size sedan Verna is the best to date in all respects. But is it better than the competitionIJ
Hyundai has been touting the hashtag #NextGenVerna fairly aggressively over the past few days to promote their latest offering on the market. However, far more effective than promoting a hashtag would be for Hyundai to send the bright “Flame Orange” coloured car that I drove around the hills over Kerala’s commercial capital Kochi. Beyond hashtags and colours, and this colour is stand-out, the latest Verna is a major improvement on what Hyundai sold. And if interest at Charpa Falls, where we parked to shoot the car, is any indication, customers are excited as well.
Technically, this is the fourth generation of the Verna being sold in India as the Accent was also a Verna globally. This is an important product for Hyundai and they have sold over eight million of them worldwide over 25 years and was the key to the Korean carmaker becoming a global force. While India remains primarily a small-car market, Hyundai India has great sales of the Grand i10 and i20 and have enjoyed great sales and great profits from the Creta. But unlike the Creta which dominates its segment, the Verna sits in a highly competitive segment with the Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz and Honda City outselling the previous ‘Fluidic’ Verna by a sizeable margin over the past year. Both averaged over 4,000 units per month while Verna sales slipped below the 1,000 units per month average. Hyundai is counting on a few aspects where the new car can outcompete its rivals and regain its sales.
Of course, there is the price factor. The Verna is extremely competitively priced, at least for the first 20,000 units, after which Hyundai India has indicated there will be a price rise. That said, the price should continue to be attractive vis-a-via the competition. The second is on the interior feature set, and here one cannot fault Hyundai because the Verna is loaded. The top-end SX(O) variant is not available on the diesel automatic I drove but available in the manual diesel. Both manual and automatic variants of the petrol engine come with the same ventilated front seats that the Elantra has. Now you may not think much of this feature, but believe me these cooled seats on a hot day in India are not only comfortable but after your commute you might actually feel refreshed. Not a feature that would make sense if you are driven around, but if you drive yourself, they are fabulous.
Then there are the looks. The competition looks a bit dated in comparison, because the new Verna does look very good; the sloping roofline towards the back gives the car a couple-like look. It is definitely the smartest looking car in its class, although at times it does seem to resemble its bigger sibling the Elantra bit too much, particularly from the rear with a similar rear taillight, but is unsurprising since they share the same platform. Then there is the automatic option on a fairly powerful 1.6-litre diesel engine, much more powerful than the main competition who lack a diesel automatic. There is the Volkswagen Vento and Skoda Rapid which come with the brilliant 7-speed DSG gearbox but those cars have never set the sales charts alight.
But the biggest improvement for the Verna is the combination of its power and performance. Previous generation Hyundai sedans, particularly in India, were tuned with a softer suspension to cope with poor road quality. In the Accent, for example, this meant that while the car glided over roads, it was prone to rolling in corners and severe understeer if you drove into a corner too fast. While this had improved over the years, the new car actually handles with a degree of poise, which earlier generations lacked, and that was evident in the hilly stretches above Kochi. This has not been at the cost of ride quality; the latest Verna still smothers the road surface.
The 128PS engine on the Verna goes well with the six-speed automatic although downshifts, when you depress the pedal for a bit of extra juice, could be a bit faster. The trick to driving a non-DSG automatic is to adjust your driving style and “master” the box. While I have not driven the six-speed manual variant as yet, as I explained in my Jeep Compass review last week, six forward manual gears is one gear too many in an urban environment and I have not been a fan on any six-speed manual car, particularly those mated to a diesel engine. That said, I’m looking forward to the manual transmission Verna as well as the petrol engined variant with a 123PS engine. When we do, we shall be sure to feature those cars in forthcoming columns.
With prices ranging from eight to twelve lakh, with the higher-spec automatic options being in the ten to twelve lakh range, the Verna could entice some Creta buyers when they walk into the showroom. And if you want a sedan in this size and price range as of right now, this clearly wins the battle.