Upcoming 7-seater cars in India: Renault Triber to Tata Buzzard

It’s raining SUVs in India and the trend seems to be just catching up. Of late, even the dormant MPV sector has caught the fantasy of Indian buyers and they are gaining good sales traction. People are now buying bigger vehicles that can seat more than just 5 people and gobble up a decent amount of luggage. For the same, the coming time will see a lot of 7 seater vehicles being launched in the country. In case you are saving up for buying a new 7-seater SUV or MPV, take a look at these upcoming vehicles before making up your mind.

Renault Triber

Expected launch timeline: August-end

Renault will launch the Triber sometime this month and it will create an all-new segment in the market. The sub-4 meter vehicle looks pretty good on the outside and looks proportionate all around. The car can seat up to 7 people and will have flexible seating options with several ways of arrangements. The interiors of the car are also quite modern with a touch infotainment system adorning the centre console along with an all-digital instrument console. The Triber will be powered by a 1.0-litre petrol motor which churns out 72 bhp and 96 Nm of peak torque. The engine will be mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or with a 5-speed AMT.

2020 Hyundai Creta 7-seater

Expected launch timeline: Late 2020

Hyundai will launch the new generation model of the Creta next year and the car has already been unveiled in China. At a later date though, Hyundai also plans to launch the 7-seater version of the SUV in India. The car will feature an all-new design with a two-tier headlamp design at the front and split tail lamps at the rear. Other features include HUD and connected infotainment system among others. Talking about the engines, the all-new Hyundai Creta 7-seater is expected to get the same 1.5-litre petrol and 1.-5-litre turbo-diesel engine that will mark its debut with the Kia Seltos in the Indian market.

MG Hector 7-seater

Expected launch timeline: Q1 2020

MG launched its first vehicle on our shores in the form of the Hector and the SUV has become a hit already. Next year, MG plans to launch a 7 seater version of the Hector in India that will chiefly rival the Tata Buzzard. The 7-seater Hector is expected to be virtually the same in terms of design and exteriors as its 5-seater counterpart. The Baojun 530 SUV, on which the Hector is based, already has a 7 seater version on sale in China and hence bringing the same to India won’t be much of an issue for the company. Expect the same engine, gearbox and equipment levels as on the 5-seater version of the Hector.

Tata Buzzard

Expected launch timeline: Q1 2020

Tata unveiled the Buzzard during the Geneva motor show this year. The seven-seater version of the Harrier will be launched by the first quarter of 2020 in the Indian market. It will be longer and taller than the Harrier and the rear end will have a slightly different design. However, the features and equipment level is expected to be the same on the Buzzard. What will also be the same is the 2.0-litre KRYOTEC diesel engine which is found on the Harrier. However, the engine will be tuned to produce around 170 PS here and an automatic transmission is also expected to be launched with the car.

Volkswagen Tiguan AllSpace

Expected launch timeline: 2020

Volkswagen will introduce the long-wheelbase variant of the Tiguan here by the end of this year. This LWB version of the Tiguan may be called the AllSpace as Volkswagen calls its other LWB vehicles in Europe. It will come with an extra row of seat and will be similar to the Skoda Kodiaq. With the launch of the new car, Volkswagen may reposition the regular Tiguan to make it more affordable in the market. Volkswagen currently uses a 2.0-litre diesel engine to power the Tiguan in the Indian market. It produces a maximum of 148 Bhp and a peak torque of 340 Nm. The 4WD SUV gets a seven-speed DSG transmission. The same set-up can be expected in the upcoming Tiguan AllSpace.

Kia Carnival

Expected launch timeline: Q1 2020

Kia plans to launch the Carnival MPV during the 2020 New Delhi Auto Expo. The Carnival will be the second model by the South Korean manufacturer in India and will chiefly rival the Toyota Innova Crysta, though it will be much bigger, feature-rich and expensive than the Crysta. It is being said that India will get an all-new facelifted version of the MPV and it will be launched in the 7 seater guise here. Powering the Carnival will be a 2.2-litre diesel engine that produces 199 Bhp of power at 3,800 rpm along with 441 Nm of torque at 1,750-2,750 rpm and will be mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.

Jeep Compass 7-seater

Expected launch timeline: 2020

The Compass has been highly successful in India and in a way has established Jeep as a trustworthy manufacturer here. The American company has been planning to launch a few new models in India since some time now that will be based on the Compass platform and it has now been confirmed that a 7-seater SUV based on the Compass will be launched next year. There is no word about the SUV’s design, interiors or engines till now by Jeep. It is expected that the 7-seater Compass based SUV will come with both petrol and diesel engines with the latter being the same 2.0 litre Fiat motor, albeit in a higher state of tune.