Photo: SB-Medien
For some reason, the 2021 Hyundai i20 put on more camouflage when it went to Scandinavia this week for its first and probably last winter testing session. The photos from last summer were much better, but maybe the car got cold and decided to put on an extra jacket.
The i20 is the European equivalent of the Accent, and you can tell it's irrelevant because nobody buys the Accent right now. Even in Europe, where small hatchbacks like the Fiesta are still doing well, Hyundai has had far better luck with pint-sized crossovers. They managed to sell just 85,000 i20s last year.
But a new generation of the i20 is being developed, and it's looking pretty swanky. Now, the old i20s were some of the least technologically advanced cars in their segment, but that's gradually changed. This 2021 model is going to sport a fully digital cockpit and more tech than you found on Mercedes compacts from a generation ago.
Now, while the original plan for the i20 called for an N high-performance version to rival the Clio RS, that may have been scrapped. Instead, the i20 will have an N Line model with the same body kit but less power, probably the 140 horsepower 1.4-liter turbo.
But the bulk of its sales will have to come from the smaller 1-liter T-GDI. And because this engine is only capable of about 110-120 grams per kilometer, Hyundai will most likely have to develop a hybrid version. Probably not a full Prius setup, but one with brake energy recuperation and a more expensive battery system.
Nearly every European automaker has already developed such a system. Renault has a real hybrid 1.6-liter with a CVT, Ford added a small electric motor to the 1.0 EcoBoost and VW has done the same with its 1.0 TSI. It's not a matter of competition, but of necessity, especially if Hyundai wants to sell the i20 as a small fleet car.
But a new generation of the i20 is being developed, and it's looking pretty swanky. Now, the old i20s were some of the least technologically advanced cars in their segment, but that's gradually changed. This 2021 model is going to sport a fully digital cockpit and more tech than you found on Mercedes compacts from a generation ago.
Now, while the original plan for the i20 called for an N high-performance version to rival the Clio RS, that may have been scrapped. Instead, the i20 will have an N Line model with the same body kit but less power, probably the 140 horsepower 1.4-liter turbo.
But the bulk of its sales will have to come from the smaller 1-liter T-GDI. And because this engine is only capable of about 110-120 grams per kilometer, Hyundai will most likely have to develop a hybrid version. Probably not a full Prius setup, but one with brake energy recuperation and a more expensive battery system.
Nearly every European automaker has already developed such a system. Renault has a real hybrid 1.6-liter with a CVT, Ford added a small electric motor to the 1.0 EcoBoost and VW has done the same with its 1.0 TSI. It's not a matter of competition, but of necessity, especially if Hyundai wants to sell the i20 as a small fleet car.
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