Goodbye 2022: Five most popular Indian cars that bid farewell this year
- Hyundai Santro, one of the oldest car models in India, and Volkswagen's best-selling model Polo were some of the more popular cars that were discontinued from the Indian markets in 2022.
2022 saw a large number of new cars launched in India after the lull of Covid days in the last two years. However, there were a few models which also got discontinued this year. A few of these models have been quite popular among car buyers. Some of these have been among the oldest brands to exist in the Indian car markets for the past decade or more. Two of the most significant names which have been discontinued in India are the Hyundai Santro and Volkswagen Polo. Here is a look at five such cars which will not hit the roads again in near future.
Hyundai Santro
Santro has been a household name, along with its arch rival Maruti Suzuki Alto, in the small hatchback segment for many years. While Hyundai tried to revive the brand back in 2018 with the introduction of the new generation model, it failed to live up to the expectations. Hyundai finally had to pull the plug on its oldest surviving car model this year.
Volkswagen Polo
Polo hatchback was not only popular in India, but across all global markets where it is still being sold. The peppy hatchback formed the backbone of Volkswagen's sales in India and was the best-selling model until the German carmaker decided to stop production earlier this year. It went out with the last edition wrapped in matte exterior paint after being in the market for at least 12 years. Volkswagen sold more than 25 lakh units of the hatchback in India before discontinuing the Polo.
Renault Duster
It is ironic that one of the earliest compact SUV to launch in India was from the French auto giant, which does not have any offering in the segment anymore. Duster was also one of the first SUVs in its segment to offer four-wheel drive and has been one of the most popular offerings besides the Korean rivals like Creta. Renault has not given any hint whether Duster will return to India in a new avatar any time soon.
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Maruti S-Cross
The S-Cross compact SUV, Maruti's first serious foray into the SUV segment since the older Grand Vitara was discontinued, failed to impress as many as the carmaker would have liked. Facing strong rivalry from Korean SUVs like Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos, the S-Cross could not capture buyer's attention and was one of the least bought Maruti models since its debut in 2015. S-Cross was the first model from Maruti Suzuki's Nexa retail network, before it was replaced by the new generation Grand Vitara.
Toyota Urban Cruiser
Toyota Motor's Maruti Brezza version was another key model to be discontinued in 2022. Launched barely three years ago, the Urban Cruiser did not match up to the fierce rivalry in the sub-compact SUV segment led by Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor. Urban Cruiser was one of the last models to be discontinued this year, and there is no word from the Japanese automaker if a new version based on the new generation Brezza will hit the roads in near future.