New Hyundai Santa Fe, Sonata planned for Malaysia – current-gen models including Veloster phased out

New Hyundai Santa Fe, Sonata planned for Malaysia – current-gen models including Veloster phased out

The current generation Hyundai Sonata, Santa Fe and Veloster sold in Malaysia have been phased out, Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has confirmed.

The three models that were on sale in our market have been replaced globally and HSDM is currently in the midst of planning for the next-generation models. We reached out to HSDM following queries from readers on the status of the seventh-generation Sonata (LF) and third-generation Santa Fe (DM). Fresh stocks of the Veloster have stopped arriving from Korea for some time now – the coupe was launched here back in 2012, with the Veloster Turbo arriving in 2015.

The current Sonata sold elsewhere is the facelifted version of the LF that surfaced in March 2017. It sports heavily-revised front and rear ends, but an unchanged dashboard that was first seen in 2014. Last year saw full model changes for the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord, and both the all-new stalwarts will be reaching ASEAN in the near future. As the Sonata facelift is already over a year old now, there is a possibility of our market skipping straight to the next generation to better match the competition.

The fourth-generation Hyundai Santa Fe made its world debut two months ago sporting a bold new look previewed by the Kona, a larger footprint and the latest safety features. The new cabin appears more upmarket and there’s also a new eight-speed automatic gearbox for the seven-seat big SUV.

As for the Veloster, Hyundai’s offbeat three-door coupe entered into the second generation in January this year, sporting a more purposeful appearance and a intriguing high-performance N variant. The niche product has never been a strong seller here, and we reckon that chances of the new Veloster reaching our shores are limited.

HSDM declined comment when asked about timelines, only confirming that it’s in the midst of planning for the next wave of Hyundais. If recent entries like the Ioniq Hybrid and Elantra Sport are a sign, we’re expecting solid propositions that are surprisingly pleasant to drive.

GALLERY: 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe

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Danny Tan

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

 

Comments

  • old horse on Apr 17, 2018 at 6:40 pm

    i like Santa Fe, but i dont know how are they going to price in this market…vs CRV, CX5 ?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 2
    • hyin21 on Apr 17, 2018 at 7:19 pm

      get the Tucson & save your worries. Best specs in the class

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 6
      • old horse on Apr 17, 2018 at 8:39 pm

        after test driving both cx5 and crv, the only thing that barred from buying cx5 is no IOS and Adroid connect..Tucson internal quality just a bit lagging before even stepping on the gas..
        CRV inside space is unbelievable !

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 4
    • Xavier lert on Apr 17, 2018 at 8:28 pm

      Crv,cx5 is tucson. Santa fe is 1 class up.near to cx9

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
    • I find only the new Santa Fe the sole interesting prospect to come from local Hyundai Sime-Darby. Zero interest in new Sonata and weirdo Veloster.

      Hope the new Santa Fe will be well-specced and come with that awesome turbodiesel engine. It would be the only 7-seater AWD monocoque SUV worth buying.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 0
  • Keladi on Apr 17, 2018 at 6:40 pm

    Proton Perdana V6 was way more advanced than Hyundai Sonata 2.0 of that era Y2k.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 16 Thumb down 44
  • Any idea if the compact Kona SUV would coming to our shores?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 2
  • Slacker on Apr 17, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    Any idea why i40 has been removed from market? Seems a nice car.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 4
  • No Name on Apr 17, 2018 at 9:12 pm

    HSDM please bring in 2018 i10 to compete with 2018 Picanto, 2018 i20 to compete with Rio Hatchback and 2018 Accent to compete with Rio Sedan. A lot of potential buyer waiting in A and B segment market.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Dylan Ch'ng on Apr 17, 2018 at 9:23 pm

    what about Hyundai i10?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • Kona Baring on Apr 17, 2018 at 9:54 pm

    Danny, any news on Hyundai Kona to be introduce into our market? I read PT article about Kona launch during Singapore Auto Show saying that Kona will be introduce here around this year..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • Leafable on Apr 17, 2018 at 10:47 pm

    HSDM please don’t ruined the original Mobis head unit and replace it with cheap Chinese made aftermarket crap just because it make you a couple of ringgit more. Please don’t ruined the beautiful new Santa Fe.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • wow… The Ioniq is the cheapest Hyundai you can buy in M’sia. I don’t know why Hyundai is not interested in bringing in the new Accent to fight the Honda City.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • Elchino on Apr 18, 2018 at 6:38 am

    Finally we are going to get d latest 3rd generation Sante fe instead of face lift and face lift of the old model. But how much?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • zamer on Apr 18, 2018 at 8:08 am

    new sonata is a big failure. can’t barely see on the road.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 1
    • old dog on Apr 21, 2018 at 5:02 pm

      sonata is a sad case…hyundai made the surprise act of the new design approach 2 generation back and the market welcome it…camry and accord is shocked then…then for no reason…sonata revert back to none aggressive design and gone case now..

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Akira on Apr 18, 2018 at 9:59 am

    Put a nice price tag and let the SUV war begins!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 1
  • Not Toyota Fan on Apr 18, 2018 at 10:02 am

    Good cars. Bad distributor.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 2
  • Autobahn on Apr 19, 2018 at 8:50 am

    Pls also bring in the i30N as your halo product range thank u

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • ahmadjohnson97 on Apr 19, 2018 at 1:32 pm

    Bring in i30n please!!!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Thomas on Apr 23, 2018 at 4:57 pm

    I love this car. I bought a Santa Fe last year from repokar and I’m enjoying every part of it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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