What’s new with the Creta?

The facelifted Creta sports a new front grille similar to that of the Tucson.

Usually, a model will receive a major update or facelift about 3 or 4 years after its initial market launch. After that, the model will remain on sale for another 2 years before ultimately being replaced by an all-new product. That’s usually how the automotive product lifecycle works around the globe, give or take a year or two.

The Creta’s facelift is peculiar insofar as the model was only launched in August 2020, before landing in the Republic in November 2020. Less than 2 years in and already a facelift? It’s not like there was a major fault with the product and its recent sales figures could be considered quite reasonable… considering the current economic climate and the spectre of stock shortages.

The answer is relatively simple. Hyundai SA has decided to change its supplier of Creta units from the brand’s factory in India to Indonesia, where a massive new plant has just come online. The Indian plant was under pressure to meet export needs and a switch to the Indonesian plant would free up some much-needed stock for Hyundai SA and provide the importer with a Creta that incorporates the brand’s latest design language – at the front, anyway.

As you can see, the new-look Creta’s cascading grille matches that of the new Tucson and creates a stronger link with other products in the Hyundai family. The rear receives less noticeable treatment, with the Creta badge moving from the side to the middle of the tailgate. The rear high-level light bar that used to be located just above the Hyundai badge is also omitted from the updated model.

The major mechanical change is that the 1.4-litre turbopetrol and 1.5-litre turbodiesel engines are no longer available. That means just the 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine remains. Hyundai SA has also added a Premium-spec IVT (automatic) model to the range, which was previously only available in Executive trim.

Any specification changes?

No more two-tone dash colouring options are available.

A few minor changes have occurred due to the change of factory. This happens as different factories may offer different options or certain specifications are just not available at that manufacturing facility.

On the Premium trim level, the new Creta does without forward-facing daytime running lights, but has gained LED tail-lights. What’s more, it comes with 17-inch alloy wheels, as opposed to the 16-inch items on the outgoing model. Strangely, the first shipment of Cretas from Indonesia cannot be fitted with a towbar, but Hyundai SA has said that this will be rectified later this year and that the customer take-up of the towbar option on the model has been negligible anyway.

The Executive derivative remains unchanged in terms of spec, except for the interior surfacing, which is now all-black, where it was two-tone (black and white) previously.

Pricing and after-sales

By dropping the more expensive derivatives from the lineup (the turbopetrol and -diesel), Hyundai is focusing its efforts on the area of the segment where most of the sales occur. With the explosion of the R250k-R400k small SUV segment in the last 18 months, Hyundai wants to offer buyers as many options as it can below the R500k mark…

Every Creta is sold with a 7-year/200 000 km warranty and a 4-year/60 000 km service plan.

Summary

The Creta still offers decent value at the upper end of the small-SUV segment.

The Indonesia-sourced Creta appears to be of a similar quality (inside and out) to the current Indian-made model. It also allows Hyundai to bring in more stock, which it believes it can sell quite easily, given the pent-up demand for its Creta.

Its price has crept up ever so slightly (and a new rival has arrived in the shape of the Toyota Corolla Cross), but the Creta’s still very competitive in its segment and offers all the features that buyers expect in terms of safety and in-car tech.

Source: https://www.cars.co.za/