Hyundai teases new Bayon light SUV for Europe

HYUNDAI Motor Company has teased a new light SUV for the European market which will sit beneath the compact Kona and serve as the entry point to the brand’s SUV line-up.

Officially dubbed the Bayon, the new offering will serve as HMC’s high-riding B-segment offering, similar to the position the Venue holds here in Australia.

Very few details have come to light as yet save for the model name and a single teaser image revealing a vertically oriented tail-light similar to that found on the next-generation Tucson.

According to HMC, the new model takes its name from the French city of Bayonne, a move reflective of the Bayon’s urban but versatile intentions.

“Hyundai is strongly established in the European SUV market already, in terms of our model range as well as our sales success,” Hyundai Motor Europe vice-president of marketing and product Andreas-Christoph Hofmann said.

“By launching a new, additional B-segment model as the entry point into our SUV line-up, we see a great opportunity to cover European customers’ demand even better and to increase our offering in a highly popular segment.”

At this stage it looks unlikely the Bayon will make it to Australia given the existence and increasing popularity of the Venue, with HMC Australia corporate communications general manager Bill Thomas telling GoAuto there were more hurdles to clear when it came to European-built models.

“We study all overseas products to evaluate suitability for this market,” he said.

“In this case, it’s unlikely we’ll import Bayon as it is a European-built product, which gives us cost challenges.

“We are a global company, with products designed and built to suit particular markets and regions by design houses and technical centres based all over the world.

“Bayon is Europe-specific and we have no doubt it will sell well in that market.”

More details on the Bayon will reportedly be revealed soon with a European launch slated for next year.

In the meantime however, HMCA has sold 3099 Venues so far this year ending October, accounting for 14.2 per cent of the light SUV segment.