The Indian car market has surprising trends but for reasons. While we do know that 70% of the total Creta sales are from diesel versions and 80% buyers opt for the manual transmission, the fact that the largest selling Creta model in India is the base E+ diesel left us a bit surprised. However, a quick look at the brochure as well as pricing of smaller compact SUVs gave us the right reason for this trend.
We had requested Hyundai for this data earlier this week and they responded within 12 hours, giving us deeper insights into the sales of the Creta. The base E+ diesel Creta is priced at Rs 9.99 lakh (ex-showroom) which works well in terms of a psychological number, under Rs 10 lakh. For the same price, buyers can pick from a loaded Titanium diesel EcoSport or the ZDI+ of the Brezza diesel. But the mere fact that you can own a SUV from a segment higher makes the E+ diesel a very popular and tempting version. After all, we all want to be seen in a ‘bigger’ car, right?
But this does not come at the cost of the SUV being feature stripped? Hyundai has made sure that anyone putting in over Rs 11 lakh (on-road) will get a fair share of features. In terms of safety, this includes dual Airbags, ABS, day/night internal mirror, impact sensing auto door unlock, speed sensitive auto door locks, lane change indicators and an immobilizer.
On the inside, buyers get a manual air-con, all four power windows, charging outlet and even a sliding front arm-rest with storage space. More features come in the form of electrically adjustable outside mirrors, keyless entry, follow-me-home headlamps and ever rear air-con vents. This is one feature that is missing even on the top spec models of the EcoSport and the Breeza!
Do note that the base E+ of the Creta diesel comes with a 1.4-litre unit that puts out 90 PS of power and 220 Nm of torque. These figures are more than ample for most users and the engine is paired to a 6-speed manual gearbox. Another thing that goes in favour of the E+ Crera diesel is the emerging market for accessories.
It’s a common sight to see customers upgrading their lower model Cretas with alloy wheels, wider tyres, LED fog lamps and even body kits. One such example is seen above. A cheaper base model always works well as you can invest into accessories month on month. However, do note that the company has the right to refuse you warranty for certain parts if you opt for after market accessories.
All said and done, the clever pricing and version line-up strategy seems to be working for Hyundai. The Creta is among the top 10 selling models in India and the E+ indeed widens its prospective customer base by a huge margin. Well done Hyundai, well done!
E+ base image source
Also Read: Everyone's buying the cheapest diesel Hyundai Creta version: We have the proof & explain why
