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Hyundai Subcompact Crossover Spied, Will Take On the Nissan Juke

Crossovers and SUVs are all the rage these days. Demand for such vehicles is so high, even subcompact offerings are highly sought-after means of personal transportation in every corner of this planet. A case in point is the Juke, which is getting a bit old.
2018 Hyundai Crossover prototype 11 photos
Photo: CarPix
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Produced since 2010 and underpinned by the Nissan B platform, the Juke has earned its keep. Last year alone, European sales totaled almost 100,000 units, while the U.S. bought 27,121 examples. To keep momentum steady, the next-generation Juke is slated to debut next year for the 2018 model year, riding on the CMF-B platform. Its immense success convinced other automakers, especially Hyundai, to try and replicate the Juke’s sure-shot recipe.

Spied for the first time by our shutterbugs, the 2018 Hyundai Whatever-It’ll-Be-Called sports a particularly recognizable front fascia. The overall shape of the headlights and the position of the fog lights, for example, are heavily inspired by those of the Jeep Cherokee and Nissan Juke. The grille has the same outline and honeycomb-like mesh patterning as the 2017 Hyundai i30.

From the profile, it’s rather clear that the side windows let more light inside the cabin than what the Mazda CX-3 has to offer. Whereas the roofline resembles that of a run-of-the-mill hatchback, the windshield raking and the curvature of the A-pillar give a sportier impression. At the rear, we can observe a singular exhaust pipe exiting on the right-hand side of the bumper. Strangely, the third brake light appears to be missing on this prototype.

As far as the interior is concerned, the top of the dashboard is camouflaged by a black blanket. Be that as it may, it’s easy to notice a bulge bang in the center, which is a sign that the infotainment system will resemble the LCD touchscreen unit from the third-generation i30. Hence, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both go, as are TomTom Live services and 3D maps.

Expected to be underpinned by a platform that combines the best the i20 and i30 have to offer, the 2018 Hyundai Whatever-It’ll-Be-Called will likely boast a 1.0-liter turbo with 120 PS and 1.4-liter turbo diesel with 90 PS. If we’re lucky, a DCT auto coupled to an 1.4 T-GDI four-banger could also make the cut with 140 PS and 242 Nm (178 lb-ft) of torque. At the present moment, it's unclear if all-wheel-drive will be available as an option for the high-output mill.
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Editor's note: Have you notice the Renault Captur right behind the prototype?

About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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