2023 Hyundai Verna Review- 1.5 MPi (Petrol-CVT): Sensible Choice!

We drive the new Hyundai Verna with NA petrol engine and CVT to find out what sense it makes in 2023

Hyundai India has launched the Verna 2023, with major improvements in various areas- from the design to powertrains. It has re-entered the mid-large sedan space, which has in recent times, been lagging behind in the numbers sold. The 6th generation Verna is hoped to bring the winds back into the sedan space, and is available in two different iterations- the regular with NA petrol engine, and the Turbo with a new 1.5L turbocharged petrol. While the latter could be the choice of most, the Nat-Asp Verna has a value proposition of its own. Read more about this below…

2023 Hyundai Verna: Overview

Hyundai Verna has hit its sixth generation. Verna 2023 is considerably larger than the car it replaces, has a fresh take on styling, packs more features and features a new set of powertrains. The car has also debuted Hyundai Group’s new 1.5L TGDi engine. Unsurprisingly, the prices have all been revised. Read this article for a more detailed look at the new Verna.

2023 Hyundai Verna Dimensions

The new Verna has grown fairly well in dimensions. It is longer and wider than the predecessor with a longer wheelbase as well. The height remains untouched though. Below are the exact dimensions.

The overall length has increased by 95mm, width by 36mm, and wheelbase by 70mm. This revision translates to more room in the cabin and a bigger boot. The new Verna has the largest boot capacity in its class- 528 litres. It has grown into a ‘mid-large sedan’ from the mid-size sedan it once used to be.

Hyundai Verna 2023 Design

Hyundai has given the new generation Verna a brand-new look, which as a matter of fact, is extremely polarising. You could either love it, or hate it, and there is no mid-way! The manufacturer calls this the ‘new Hyundai face’ hinting at the same making appearances on the global Elantra and Sonata in the time ahead. The underlying design philosophy on the new Verna is ‘Sensuous Sportiness’- the same that we had seen on the new Tucson, recently.

Key design highlights include full-width LED positioning lamps, DRLs, sleek headlamps, turn indicators that strangely use regular Halogen bulbs instead of LEDs, a parametric grille, prominent body lines on the side profile, fastback silhouette, full-width lightbar connecting tail lamps, lip spoiler, and good-looking 16-inch wheels. There is an overall air of boldness to the design, which also features a number of segment firsts in design, like the LED positioning lamps.

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The Turbo variant differs slightly from the non-Turbo in design. While the regular car gets Black Chrome treatment to its grille and a few other places, the Turbo has a proper Black grille that adds more sportiness to the styling. Plus, the 2023 Verna Turbo also gets a sleek air intake just above the grille for ensuring better breathing to the intercooler. Other design differentiations include multiple Red accents like the ones on brake callipers.

While ‘good looking’ could still be a subjective remark, there is no denying that the new Verna is a very proportionate sedan on design grounds, and something that demands instant attention in real-world road runs. Before you draw a conclusion on the styling, we’d like to say that this car looks better than most of its spy images that had surfaced previously.

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2023 Hyundai Verna Interior And Features

The new Verna comes with an in-and-out makeover to its cabin. There are two cabin colourways available. The non-Turbo Verna (that you see here) gets a Black-Cream dual-tone scheme, while the Turbo gets all-Black interiors.

The layout and design of the interior have both been re-drawn from scratch. The dashboard and entire cluster are driver-oriented. Overall material and build qualities are great. There are no boring, dull surfaces/plastics like the ones you’d find in Creta and i20 ( or even the Ioniq 5!). Most surfaces, trims and panels look and feel premium. The full-width AC vents look stylish and are neatly integrated into the dashboard. The two-spoke steering wheel looks and feels good as well.

There are two large screens inside Verna’s cabin. The 10.25-inch touchscreen is now improved, fast and very intuitive, and comes with connectivity features like Apple Carplay, Android Auto and Amazon Alexa integration with ‘Home to vehicle’ function. The second screen is a large instrumentation unit, that surprisingly isn’t the attractive one from Alcazar, but is more of a combo backlit panel, that feels to be borrowed straight from the Kia Carens.

The new Verna comes with a switchable control panel for its AC- infotainment controls. The sleek panel gets two rotary controls and several touch-based controls that can be used to control the climate control and infotainment systems, toggled by the press of a button. Yes, we have seen touch-based controls on rivals like the Honda City, but a switchable unit, is a segment first. The convenience that the rotary controls add to infotainment operations is infinite!

Most features from the previous car have been carried forward. Verna 2023 comes with equipment like a wireless charger, ventilated seats (that now get heating function as well), ambient lighting, 8 speaker Bose premium audio (with 2 subwoofers), powered driver seat, electrochromic mirror, sunroof, keyless entry etc. A major miss-out here, would be the 360-degree camera.

New Hyundai Verna Rear Seat Comfort

The new Verna comes with the widest rear seat among all mid-large sedans. The rear room has had a great leap up, from the previous car. Seats are nice, wide and comfortable. Leg, knee and headroom have improved. However, the bump in overall length and wheelbase seems to have had more effect on the boot space than rear room.

The rear occupants do enjoy great leg and knee rooms, but not plenty as the on-paper dimensions could suggest. The rear seat angle could feel slightly upright for a sedan of this class, but never intense enough to raise complaints. However, going by how large this car is, there could still be room for a slight recline function for the rear seat.

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The thigh support seems to have improved from the previous car. Overall ride at the rear is great and comfortable. Plus, the occupant does not sit as low on the Gen 6 car, as they used to on the predecessor. This doesn’t mean the car stands low or has low ground clearance, but the perks of packaging efficiency and fastback design. This also makes ingress and egress easier.

2023 Hyundai Verna Specifications: 1.5 NA Petrol CVT

Hyundai Verna has become a petrol-only sedan for 2023. It is now available with two petrol engines alone- 1.5 NA and 1.5 Turbocharged petrol. The Nat-Asp petrol is available with a 6-speed manual and iVT transmissions. This engine produces 115 hp and 143 Nm. This could look like a familiar engine, but comes with a handful of improvements on the new car. It gets selectable drive modes and an idle start/stop system for better efficiency. The iVT offers 6 simulated ratios as well. The sixth-generation Verna is underpinned by a new platform too.

2023 Hyundai Verna Petrol CVT Performance

The 115hp NA engine is quite usable in its character. It packs an even spread of oomph and feels better refined on the new sedan. The power delivery feels smooth and linear. It is a breeze to drive around in the city. The drive modes work quite well. While the Eco mode feels sluggish, Normal feels sweet and suited for most scenarios.

Sport mode, however, pumps up the engine’s vigour at low spins. However, when you try to floor the car, there is a decent amount of rubberband effect felt from the CVT box. The transmission, as a whole, feels better with its shifts on the new Verna, than anything we’ve had it in, yet.

Refinement has improved a lot. The engine offers impressive NVH levels. Adding to this is the cabin insulation, which filters out most of the engine soundtrack along with other distractions.

2023 Hyundai Verna Petrol CVT Handling And Ride

The new chassis and suspension have contributed greatly to ensuring a sweet balance between ride and handling on the new Verna. Body control is now significantly better than all its predecessors. The car doesn’t feel soft-sprung or bouncy anymore. Bumps are now absorbed well and occupants are kept comfortable in low-speed scenarios. 2023 Verna behaves well at Expressway speeds as well.

The steering has always been a bummer in the Verna. The sedan has over the years, garnered many complaints for having light, disconnected steering. The previous car had made significant progress in this, and the 2023 Verna adds more to this. The steering now feels more connected and the weight varies between drive modes.

The overall road manners are to be loved. While this is no car/ powertrain that yearns to be pushed into corners, it doesn’t scare you off if you do so. The tyres offer good grip as well. The NA Verna gets disc brakes at the front and drums at the rear. There is, however, no big compromise in overall braking efficiency.

ADAS On Hyundai Verna 2023

Hyundai has given the new Verna its new-age ADAS pack. There are a total of 17 ADAS functions/features on offer. The MPi (Non-Turbo) variants, however, get everything except adaptive cruise control (‘Smart Follow’)- which is a Turbo exclusive. Overall efficiency and precision of ADAS features are quite good.

2023 Hyundai Verna Mileage: NA Petrol With IVT

Fuel efficiency still remains a key concern among mid-large sedan buyers. The 2023 Verna petrol automatic (NA) doesn’t disappoint you with its fuel efficiency figures. If driven with a light foot and in a rational way, you can milk out 13-14 kpl from this powertrain, in the Normal mode. The Eco mode will fairly curb the performance but return close to 15-16 kpl on highways. But would you really do that on the highways? Well then, consider 13kpl to be the staple figures! Expect drops to 10-ish kpl if you are to push this car hard!

2023 Hyundai Verna Price And Variants

The top-spec Verna 2023 with NA petrol and iVT (CVT) automatic transmission would cost you 16.19 lakh, ex-showroom. This would mean that the fully loaded SX (O) Auto could cost close to 20-ish lakh OTR. The Verna has now moved up a segment, in key areas like size, features, and performance ( specific to the Turbo), doing fair justice to the price. It may not be the best in terms of performance, handling, fuel efficiency or cabin experience, but is so sweet a balance in all these.

The NA Petrol automatic makes for a very sensible choice for someone looking for a comfortable, feature-packed, roomy sedan and is not specific about outright performance.

Vehicle courtesy: Popular Hyundai, Kochi | 81379 86469