New Hyundai Elantra front and rear spied up close; launch likely by 2016 end

A prototype of Hyundai Elantra has been spied undergoing testing on the Indian road once again, this time giving a closer look at the rear and front profiles of the model.

Hyundai has been testing the Elantra premium sedan in India for quite some time and the eagle-eyed spy photographers have managed to capture it few times already. The latest batch of spy shots come from carandbike and in the images, the test mule is seen with heavy camouflage, thus not revealing anything new. However, the repeated sightings of the model undergoing testing on the Indian roads indicate that the company is indeed looking to bring the premium sedan to the domestic market earlier than expected. It was reported earlier that Hyundai has fast-tracked the launch of the Elantra and now it could come later this year. Hyundai didn't showcase the new Elantra at the Auto Expo 2016 in February as it did not have plans to launch the sedan this year.

Unveiled in Korea in September 2015, the new Elantra sedan is already on sale in a few international markets like North America and Korea. Hyundai is likely to make few changes when it brings the Elantra to India. From what we have heard so far, the Elantra is expected to get prominent hexagonal grille flanked by a pair of swept-back headlamps and prominent character lines and wide LED taillights in the rear. It is expected to come with features like a three-spoke steering wheel and a touchscreen infotainment system with satellite navigation.

Powering the Elantra in India is likely to be three engines -- a 1.6-litre VGT CRDi diesel motor, a 1.6-litre GDi petrol engine and a 2.0-litre MPi petrol engine. There is no information about the transmission of the Elantra in India as of now. However, in the international markets, the petrol engines come paired with six-speed manual and automatic transmissions, while the diesel one gets a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

Expected to be priced in the range of Rs. 13 lakh to Rs. 17 lakh, the new Elantra will be pitted against Toyota Corolla Altis, Volkswagen Jetta, Skoda Octavia and the Chevrolet Cruze in India when launched later this year.