New Hyundai Exter locked in for South Africa!
The new Hyundai Exter – set to arrive as the brand’s smallest and most affordable crossover – has been confirmed for South Africa. Here’s when it’s due to launch…
It’s official: the new Hyundai Exter is coming to South Africa. Yes, the Korean firm’s local distributor has confirmed to Cars.co.za that the new small crossover is scheduled to arrive in Mzansi towards the final quarter of 2024.
Though an exact date has not yet been nailed down, Hyundai Automotive SA told us that it’s targeting a local launch in September or October 2024. As an aside, Hyundai’s global office in Seoul applied to register the “Exter” badge in South Africa in October 2022, with the local registration of this trademark taking effect in December 2023.
Poised to arrive as the smallest and most affordable crossover in the automaker’s local range, the Exter will surely slot in below the Venue, which currently kicks off at R328 900. We’d speculate that the newcomer will be priced just above the Grand i10, which took over as the entry point to Hyundai’s local line-up with the discontinuation of the Atos.
Revealed a year ago (in May 2023), the Exter employs the same platform underpinning the Grand i10 hatchback and sedan twins, and is likewise produced in India at Hyundai’s plant in Sriperumbudur near Chennai. Exter demand in that country has been strong from the outset, prompting the firm to prioritise Indian sales over export markets. Now, however, with production seemingly having ramped up sufficiently, the Exter has finally been locked in for SA.
The boxy little crossover measures 3 815 mm long (incidentally, exactly the same length as the Grand i10 hatch), with a wheelbase of 2 450 mm, a width of 1 710 mm, a height of 1 631 mm (including roof rails) and a ground clearance of 185 mm. That makes it around 180 mm shorter from nose to tail than the likes of the Venue, Nissan Magnite and Renault Kiger (and 166 mm stubbier than the CC21-generation Citroën C3, too), but about 115 mm longer than the Suzuki Ignis.
While local specifications have yet to be determined, in India the Exter is offered with the automaker’s ubiquitous naturally aspirated 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engine. Familiar from the likes of the Grand i10, i20 hatch and Venue, this “Kappa” motor delivers 61 kW and 114 Nm to the front axle. In its country of manufacture, the Exter is available with either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed automated manual transmission (AMT).
The Indian-spec model can furthermore be specified in dual-tone form (effectively adding a black finish for the roof), while all derivatives in that market ship standard with items like a digital instrument cluster and a full complement of 6 airbags. Other interesting features available on high-spec derivatives in India include an 8.0-inch touchscreen system, wireless smartphone charging, 15-inch alloy wheels and what Hyundai describes as a segment-first sunroof.
We’ll keep our ears open and eyes peeled for fresh information as the local Hyundai Exter launch draws closer…
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