Hyundai's Santa Fe at 2008 Delhi Auto Expo

Hyundai is aiming at the booming premium SUV segment and will launch its full-size SUV the Santa Fe by October this year.

Hyundai’s earlier attempts at cracking the Indian SUV market failed with the Terracan and Tucson. The Santa Fe’s launch is also delayed and the model is internationally over two years old. Nonetheless the success of Toyota’s Fortuner and Ford’s Endeavour has egged on Hyundai to launch its own premium SUV.

The seven-seater Santa Fe is powered by a 2.2-litre diesel engine which belts out about 148bhp. It will be priced between Rs. 22-24 lakh and will feature four-wheel drive. The SUV is expected before Diwali 2010 and Hyundai will initially import the Santa Fe as completely built units. Depending on the market response the SUV may be locally assembled later which will bring down its cost.