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Nǐ Hǎo! Hyundai iX25 Compact Crossover Appears at Chinese Auto Show

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Hyundai iX25 Compact Crossover Orange Guangzhou

The original unveiling of the iX25 at the Beijing Auto Show

While the auto news industry is electric this week with American-brand news coming from the LA Auto Show, South China is celebrating its own auto show in Guangzhou at the same time.

Hyundai’s making headlines at the Guangdong province’s biggest automotive event with its showcase of a B-segment CUV that began as a concept launch at the Beijing Auto Show in April. Now a hot seller in China, the metallic orange Hyundai iX25 compact crossover is looking to acquire more fans—and it’s far more interesting than anything being touted by Hyundai in Los Angeles.


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Hyundai iX25 Compact Crossover Looking to Make International Friends

The fact that the iX25 is being showcased at another Chinese auto show in the same year might seem underwhelming. What’s Hyundai doing promoting the same concept vehicle all over again?

Since its debut in April, Hyundai exclusively launches the iX25 CUV in China with a base price of 119,800 yuan ($19,500 for those of us in the United States). Now, the automaker is at the Guangzhou Auto Show gauging interest of foreign car markets–especially India, where Hyundai has been testing the iX25.

Not many details are known about the iX25, but the basic specs include a length of 168 inches, 1.6-liter four-cylinder (producing 124.5 horsepower and 111.1 lb-ft torque) or 2.0-liter four-cylinder (160.2 horsepower and 141.6 lb-ft) gasoline engine options, and 6-speed manual or automatic transmissions. While many of its features don’t seem that impressive for us in the United States, this level of luxury is uncommon in many bare-bones models in China and India. The iX25 exhibits:

  • LED daytime running lights
  • Panoramic sunroof
  • Leather seats
  • Electrically folding wing mirrors
  • Touchscreen multimedia infotainment system
  • Automatic climate control
  • Keyless start
  • Reverse parking camera

Despite being  strategically developed for China and similar Asian markets, the Hyundai iX25 compact crossover seems perfect for the American urban market. This demographic, a “young generation who seek style and practicality at the same” according to Hyundai, has been the main target for many LA Auto Show releases this week. Hyundai even claims that the “i” in ix25 “represents the ‘inspiring, intelligent and innovative’ characteristics of the young generation.” The unveiled Mazda CX-3 and Chevy Trax are evidence that the compact crossover is becoming a hot commodity here. Too bad the iX25 isn’t ready for a stateside release soon.

Right now, Hyundai is staying focused on its Chinese-market competition (Honda XR-V, Honda Vezel) and Indian-market competition (Renault Duster, Nissan Terrano).


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