By Paul Gover.
Another new-car class is about to fall to the rising tide of SUVs.
It’s the baby-car category and the car that is surfing the wave is the all-new Hyundai Venue.
It’s small, it’s youthful, it’s completely new, and – best of all for many people – it starts at $19,990.
The Venue is likely to be the first of many baby SUVs in showrooms within two years, starting with Kia which will have a twin-under-the-skin model thanks to the South Korean companies’ shared ownership.
It also answers the needs which have been partially answered in the past by cars as diverse, but not as focussed, as the Kia Picanto and Suzuki Vitara.
The Venue slides into Australia as the claimed replacement for the starting-price Accent, a baby hatchback that’s well past its drive-by date and priced from $15,490.
But, in reality, the Venue is a potential segment-buster that undercuts a whole range of small SUVs – from the Mazda CX-3 and Honda HR-V to the Subaru XV and even Hyundai’s own Kona – that start from the mid-$20,000s.
It’s smaller in size and price but Hyundai has cleverly gone funky on the design work, making it boxy and fresh with a predictably big infotainment screen in the centre of the dash. There is no pretension about off-road ability or Jeep-style toughness, just a modern design that maximises the space in a minimal footprint.
Who is likely to buy it?
The obvious answer is anyone buying a new car for the first time.
The Venue ticks their boxes because it has all the regular Hyundai strengths – from a sharp price and a five-year warranty to a $1575 service package that also runs for five years – but bundles it into a new package. So there is no fear factor in walking into a showroom for the first time.
It also has suspension that has been tuned for Australian roads and drivers, showing Hyundai’s ongoing commitment to getting its cars right down under.
The Venue lands as Hyundai also launches the second generation of its quirky Veloster Turbo. It is a cross between a hatchback and a coupe, with two doors on the passenger side for better access, and comes with a promise from the new boss of Hyundai Australia – John Kett – that the company is going to do more than just driveway pricing in the future.
That is reflected in the styling of the Venue, but also an emphasis on the slightly-more-costly Go model that hits showrooms at $21,990.
So, what’s it like?
Small. For a start.
It’s never going to work for a full-sized family and anyone with a baby is probably going to have to fold the rear seats down to get a pram into the back.
But it will be just fine for a one-plus-youngsters runabout, or someone who needs a city commuter car, or even a retiree who needs a high-rider SUV that is more like a baby car under the skin.
It gets along just fine with a 1.6-litre petrol engine and six-speed automatic gearbox, has a 5-star ANCAP safety score, and also has claimed fuel economy of 7.2 litres/100km.
As a drive, it’s no sports car but it is quiet and comfortable and has everything you really need in a baby car.
The Venue is very different to the larger Kona, which feels more plush and substantial without getting into the heft of a Tucson or seven-seater Santa Fe, but that’s not a complaint.
It does what it says on the box and that’s what people want, and need, at the bottom end of the new-car world.
THE BASICS
Hyundai Venue
Price: from $19,990
Power: 90 kiloWatts, 151 Newton-metres
Position: compact SUV
Plus: SUV styling, tiny size, efficiency, value
Minus: a touch tinny, small inside
THE TICK – YES
