2018 Hyundai Santro spied testing in India; may debut at Auto Expo in February

South Korean carmaker Hyundai appears to be putting its new compact hatchback internally called AH2 through rigorous testing on the Indian roads and a prototype of the car has been caught on camera once again. The AH2, which is likely to bring back the nameplate Santro to India, was first spotted a couple of months back in India and is speculated to make its debut at the upcoming Auto Expo in February 2018.

The latest set of images of the new Santro was shared on Twitter and it gives a closer look at the rear profile of the model. Although the new Santro spotted was hiding under considerable amount of camouflage, it gave a quick glance at the new high mounted taillamps, rear windshield wiper and a new set of wheels. The pictures do not give us a front view. However, earlier images had suggested that new Santro will get design in line with the Grand i10 with features like cascading grille.

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It was reported earlier that the new Santro could get two petrol engines -- 1.1-litre and 1.2-litre and possibly priced at around Rs 4 lakh. The engines are likely to come mated to a five-speed manual transmission. With regard to the competition in the market, Hyundai's new car is likely to rival Renault Kwid, Tata Tiago and Maruti Suzuki Celerio among others.

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The hatchback could essentially be the replacement of i10 in the Hyundai India line-up and could be slotted between Eon and Grand i10. The new Santro is speculated to retain the tallboy design and may also have AMT (Automated Manual Transmission) technology.