Hyundai was amongst the latecomers in joining the subcompact SUV game. While some saw that as a downer, most did not. The reason is simple – it gave Hyundai the right amount of time to do the homework thoroughly and then land itself in one of the most hotly contested car segments in India. The Venue, which went on sale in May last year, now has some numbers to show. Up until now, over 97,400 units have found takers in India. Overseas, the cumulative sales number is more than 7,400. Simple math reveals that the total sales figure stands at 104,800.

Drilling down to uncover finer details with such a sample size is a fun exercise. At least for those who like number-crunching! Over the first five months of 2020, the Venue came out as the highest-seller of its kind in India. During that period, Hyundai retailed over 24,400 units. Variants equipped with the 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine accounted for nearly 44 per cent of the total sales. Hyundai claims that over 15,000 customers opted for derivatives with the 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, which is only on offer with the 1.0-litre turbo-petrol mill.

Earlier this year, when Hyundai introduced the BS6-compliant (Bharat Stage 6) Venue, it also gave it a punchier diesel engine. The 1.5-litre diesel, which also powers the Verna, Creta and Elantra, isn’t as powerful in the Venue as in other Hyundais. That said, it did manage to strengthen the Venue’s portfolio. Over 30 per cent sales between March and June 2020 accounted for variants fitted with that engine.

The Venue also became the first Hyundai to offer BlueLink technology. In a nutshell, it provides several connected-car features which fall under different categories like safety, security and alerts. Hyundai says that over 30,000 customers opted for derivatives equipped with BlueLink.

In India, the Hyundai Venue rivals the likes of the Ford EcoSport, Mahindra XUV300, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Tata Nexon and the Honda WR-V. Based on the numbers given above, do you think the Venue is a success story?