Hyundai Motor India enters commercial segment with Prime Taxi range launch

The Hyundai Motor India Limited has entered the commercial mobility market in India, marking its foray into the new market after focusing on the passenger vehicle market for so long. The Prime Taxi lineup is introduced initially with two variants: Prime HB, a hatchback that is designed for usage in a metropolitan environment, and Prime SD, a sedan that is developed for use between cities or for travel to airports.

These vehicles have been designed while taking into consideration the heavy usage patterns of commercial vehicles, where durability, fuel efficiency and low cost of ownership are critical decision factors.

The Prime HB variant is priced from an ex-showroom price of INR 5.99 lakh, while the Prime SD variant will cost an ex-showroom price of INR 6.89 lakh. Customers can book these variants from today at Hyundai dealerships across India by paying a booking amount of INR 5,000. These variants will cater to both personal users as well as taxi service operators.

These variants of Prime Taxi come with a well-known 1.2-litre Kappa 4-cylinder engine from Hyundai, also offering factory-fitted CNG variants. The company claims these variants will offer high uptime and will be ideal from a mileage perspective, two aspects that have a huge effect on the profitability of a taxi service. The features offered by Prime Taxi variants will include basic features such as a number of airbags, rear AC vents, power windows, parking assist, and speed limiting functions.

Commenting on the company s entry into the segment, Tarun Garg, Managing Director and CEO-designate of Hyundai Motor India, said, "With the introduction of Prime HB and Prime SD, HMIL is proud to enter the commercial mobility space with products that are engineered for trust, reliability and good earning potential. Fleet operators and taxi drivers look for vehicles that deliver maximum uptime, predictable maintenance and low cost of ownership, and the Hyundai Prime range has been developed precisely with these priorities in mind."

The Prime Taxi series is supported by specially customised extended warranties, which include the fourth and fifth years or the first 1,80,000 kilometres, whichever is earlier. In addition, flexible financing terms, which can extend for 72 months, as well as customised maintenance plans aimed at minimising downtime, also aid customers.

With the evolving mobility dynamics in India, this foray by Hyundai in the mobility business reflects the warming up of passenger car manufacturers to focus on high-use, service-oriented segments.