After Santro's exit, i10 is Hyundai’s new bet for taxi market

In the last three days of 2014, Hyundai Motor India sold 200 units of the i10 hatchback to be used as black- and-yellow cabs in Mumbai. This was the first batch of i10 hatchbacks to be used as taxis. The car enters the space that its elder sibling, the Santro, whose production came to an end in October 2014.

Towards the end of its life, half of the Santro's sales volume came from the taxi market. Prior to that around 30 percent of Santros sold were used as taxis, the rest for personal use.

With the i10 entering the taxi market, Hyundai Motor India hopes the taxi segment will be a key contributor to its sales story in the years to come. "Mumbai alone is likely to require 8,000 new taxis. We are offering the i10 as a good option for customers to choose from," says Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president (marketing and sales), Hyundai Motor India. The i10 currently sells in the region of 3,000 units a month.

As the Grand i10 gets more takers for personal use, Hyundai could look at the taxi market to keep the sales chart moving at a good rate for the i10. Will the Xcent also follow the i10 into the taxi/radio cab market? Srivastava says there are no such plans.