New Hyundai Verna vs rivals: Specifications comparison

Hyundai has brought its all-new Verna to India at a starting price of Rs 7.99 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The new Verna will replace the previous-gen car (Codename: RB) that was launched in India way back in 2011. As the upcoming 2017 Verna goes up against the Maruti Ciaz, Honda City and Volkswagen Vento in the mid-size sedan segment, we’ve done an on-paper comparison of these cars.

Design
The new Verna looks similar to the outgoing model but has fresh styling that can be seen in the new grille, larger headlamps, chrome-lined fog lamp housings, slimmer tail-lamps and new 16-inch alloy wheels. Compared to the older model, the Hyundai Verna is slightly longer and wider, while retaining the same overall height. The new car is one of the widest of the mid-size sedans and sports the largest rear headroom, though its boot is also the smallest amongst its rivals.

While The Honda City has the largest boot space, along with the Ciaz, it is also the tallest out of the lot, it is short on rear headroom when compared to the Verna. The City also has the smallest fuel tank.

The Ciaz is the longest and widest car here, along with possessing the longest wheelbase and largest boot space. However, the Maruti loses out in terms of fuel tank capacity and rear headroom.

VW’s Vento scores high in fuel tank capacity, but misses out in terms of wheelbase, which is the smallest in this comparison. Its marginally smaller size when compared to its rivals may prove useful when parking or in traffic.

Interiors
Like all Hyundai cars, the Verna gets a lot of equipment such as a new 7.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and voice commands, steering-mounted audio controls, rear air con vents, cooled and ventilated front seats (a segment-first), a sunroof, cruise control and rear parking sensors. In terms of safety equipment, the Hyundai comes with six airbags in the top-spec variants. This level of goodies brings it on par with its rivals.

The Honda City comes with a 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with MirrorLink support for smartphone connectivity, in-built navigation, voice commands and steering-mounted audio controls. The automatic variants of the City also get paddle shifters. Along with the sunroof, the equipment list for the Verna and the City are nearly the same, barring the cooled front seats. Even in the safety department, both sedans get six airbags for the top-spec trims.

The Maruti Ciaz also comes with a similarly long equipment list as its rivals, though the top-of-the-line Alpha variant also gets the SmartPlay infotainment system with Apple CarPlay. On the safety front, the Ciaz only offers two airbags even on top-spec trims.

Volkswagen’s Vento also offers a comprehensive list of features, from the rear air con vents to the steering-mounted audio controls for the touchscreen infotainment system that accepts voice commands and offers MirrorLink smartphone connectivity. Like the Ciaz, even top-spec Vento variants miss out on a few airbags, getting only dual front ones.

Engines and performance
Hyundai’s new Verna will sport the same 1.6-litre petrol motor, making 123hp and 151Nm of peak torque, and the 1.6-litre turbo-diesel engine producing 128hp and 260Nm of peak torque. While the diesel engine retains the six-speed manual ‘box, the five-speed manual will not be offered with the petrol engine and has been replaced with a new six-speed manual. Both engines will get the option of a six-speed automatic transmission as well. Both engines are the most powerful in their class.

The Honda City gets a 1.5-litre petrol mill developing 119hp and 145Nm of peak torque, and a 1.5-litre diesel engine that produces 100hp and 200Nm of peak torque. While the petrol engine gets the option of a five-speed manual or a CVT gearbox, the diesel motor is paired to a six-speed manual.

Maruti’s Ciaz is also offered with a petrol and a diesel engine. The 1.4-litre petrol mill powers the front wheels with 92.5hp and 130Nm of torque via a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic transmission. The 1.3-litre Fiat-sourced diesel engine, which is mated to a five-speed manual, produces 90hp and 200Nm of torque. The Maruti is definitely down on power when compared to its competition, but boasts the best claimed fuel efficiency in its class. The Ciaz also offers a segment-first mild-hybrid setup for its diesel engine.

Volkswagen’s Vento gets three engine options – a 105hp 1.6-litre petrol, a 105hp 1.2-litre turbo-petrol and a 110hp 1.5-litre diesel. The 1.6-litre petrol is exclusively mated to a five-speed manual while the 1.2-litre turbocharged engine only gets the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. The diesel motor is offered with a five-speed manual and a DSG automatic transmission. The Vento’s claimed fuel efficiency figures are the lowest in this comparison.

Pricing
Prices for the new Verna start at Rs 7.99 lakh and go up to Rs 12.62 lakh for the top-spec automatic-diesel. Interestingly, the price of the previous-gen base 1.6 petrol was Rs 81,000 more while the new top-of the-line diesel-automatic costs the same as the last-gen top-spec model.The Honda City is priced from Rs 8.46 lakh to Rs 13.43 lakh, the Maruti Ciaz from Rs 7.66 lakh to Rs 11.44 lakh for the mild hybrid, and Volkswagen’s Vento costs Rs 8.05 lakh to Rs 13.78 lakh for the 1.5-litre Highline Plus diesel automatic (all prices ex-showroom, Delhi).

On paper, Hyundai’s new mid-size sedan shakes up the status quo in the segment. However, a proper road test will be required to make an informed decision.

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