The Casper is Hyundai’s smallest ever SUV, according to the brand’s friendly boast.
Hyundai has released images of an upcoming SUV which the brand claims will create “an all new car class that never existed before”. A cross between a city car and a crossover, the new Casper will be the smallest SUV to be sold by the brand and is destined for markets outside of Europe – although Hyundai Australia has ruled it out.
Underneath its rather cute styling, the Casper is likely to use the same platform as the i10 city car – which should help put the Casper’s tiny size into perspective.
There will initially be a choice of two trim levels, each with a variation of a 1.0-litre 3-cylinder petrol engine. The options will be either the standard model, featuring a 49kW naturally-aspirated MPI engine, or the sportier Active variant with a 73kW turbocharged T-GDI unit. Other versions will probably follow, and while it is unlikely that a hot ‘N’ version will be among them, there is rumour of a fully-electric drivetrain for the Casper by the 2023 model year, though this is currently unconfirmed.
Although details such as the interior design and pricing are yet to be revealed, Hyundai seems to be orienting the Casper towards a younger customer base with its emphasis on dynamic and sporty credentials – so much so that the name ‘Casper’ is actually derived from a skateboarding trick, rather than a certain supernatural being as some may have first thought.
The Casper is set to only go on sale first in the brand’s South Korean home market. ‘Early bird’ preorders for the Korean market are now open via a dedicated website for the model.
Shane Wilkinson