Hyundai has discontinued selling the Accent in the Indian market, as sales of the car have seen a sharp decline according to report by livemint. It is also understood that the car was discontinued to pave way for a new hatchback positioned between the i10 and the i20, which could be the new i10/brillliant. The Hyundai Accent was first launched launched in India in 1999, it was one of the first cars the company to enter the market after the Santro. It was a hit then because it was priced right and it’s competition was virtually nil. Hyundai was getting popular because of the Santro and people were attracted towards this big but cheap sedan, the popularity of the Accent reached its peak in 2005 when about 30,000 units were sold. The Accent saw minor changes as the years went by, it started out as the GTX (1999-2002), Viva (2002-2004), CRDi (2002-2004), GLS (2004-2005), GLE (2006-2011) and finally the Executive (Launched in 2011).
The latest variant of Hyundai Accent, the Executive, was only offered with a 1.5 litre, 94 BHP, petrol engine which reduced customers’ interest in it. Only 2931 units of the car were sold last year, which is an impressive figure for what essentially is a decade old car. Features were way behind its competition; the only safety feature that the company advertised on the car was the collapsible steering column. the Accent was getting too old in terms of looks, but it had still been sold along with two generations of its successor, the Verna! Even if Hyundai has decided to pull the Accent off the market, it doesn’t mean the car will not be produced anymore. The demand for the car is huge in many markets globally, like in Algeria. We bid the Accent, Adieu!
source: IAB and livemint
