Hyundai i20 facelift revealed ahead of India launch

Hyundai has released the first set of pictures and details of the refreshed i20 that will go on sale in Europe soon. The India launch of the i20 facelift, however, is still some time away, according to sources. The current-gen i20 went on sale overseas in mid-2020, but it was launched in India towards the end of the year.

Hyundai i20 facelift: what’s new?
As part of the mid-life update for the third-gen i20, Hyundai has not made many changes to the interior and exterior. However, a close look reveals some styling tweaks, especially to the front and rear bumper in order to keep the design fresh. There are slight tweaks to the grille and the front bumper now gets two large arrow-shaped inlets on each side. The chin is now wider and more prominent and has a contrast black finish on the lower part. The headlamps, however, remain unchanged which are full-LED units in Europe. 

Additionally, the Hyundai logo has been repositioned from the grille to the base of the bonnet, and gets a new 2D design. The refreshed i20 also gets a new alloy wheel design, with 16-inch units in lower trims and 17-inch ones on the top trims. Changes to the rear are minimal with slight tweaks to the the dual-tone rear bumper along with a more prominent faux rear diffuser. There are some additions to the exterior paint shade pallete, which include new Lime metallic colour, Lumen Grey and a Meta Blue pearl shade.

The i20 facelift will be built in Turkey for the European market, just like the current car, and will continue to be sold with a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine coupled with 48V mild-hybrid tech. It will be available with either a seven-speed DCT automatic or a six-speed manual.

While there are no major changes to the interior or the equipment list of the i20, an important addition is the inclusion of ADAS as standard that comes with lane following assistance and forward collision warning and assistance. The 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster has also been improved from before.  

Hyundai i20 facelift for India
As mentioned above, the current-gen i20 went on sale in India a few months after the car’s global debut overseas, which means the facelift for the India-spec i20 is still some time away. Expect the i20 facelift for India to have similar styling tweaks with country-specific updates to the powertrains, tyre sizes and equipment.

The i20 sold in India comes with either a 1.2-litre naturally aspirated petrol or a 1.0-litre direct injection turbo-petrol engine mated to either a five-speed manual, a CVT automatic, an iMT or a DCT automatic, depending on the engine. The i20 facelift, when launched in India, will continue to rival the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno, the Tata Altroz and the Toyota Glanza.

Upcoming Hyundai launches for India: 2023 and beyond
Hyundai has lined up launches of the all-new Exter micro SUV later this year. The Creta facelift and the Creta N Line are also due in the Indian market early next year.

Also see
Hyundai i20 facelift image gallery