When looking at compact SUVs, performance isn’t quite high on the list of priorities. Many people overlook performance in favour of practicality, features, and safety. So today, we will look at the quickest compact SUVs in the market. Attention Readers! Join us on the WhatsApp Community for daily auto news updates.
Fastest Compact SUVs – Maruti Brezza Smart Hybrid- 15.24s
Pricing – Rs 9.62 lakh – Rs 15.31 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)
Despite having the largest petrol engine, the Brezza is the slowest in its segment. Its 1.5-litre engine produces a modest 102bhp & 139Nm. It might be one of the more powerful naturally-aspirated engines in the market, but it fails to keep up with the likes of the turbo-petrols and diesels. While it is also offered with a 6-speed AT, the car we had on test was the manual one. The 0-100 km/h times would improve slightly with the torque converter unit.
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Tata Nexon Petrol – 14.63s
Pricing – Rs 8.70 lakh – Rs 17.24 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)
Surprisingly, the 1.2-litre turbo-petrol of the Nexon is quite lethargic. The 118bhp & 170Nm figures suggest that the Nexon would be on the top of such lists, but that isn’t quite the case. While we tested the manual version, don’t expect the 7-speed DCT to perform much better. Tata has tuned the DCT gearbox to maximise efficiency, so it is quite different from the more aggressive DCT of the Kia Sonet and Hyundai Venue.
Fastest Compact SUVs – Skoda Kylaq – 12.66s
Pricing – Rs 8.99 lakh – Rs 15.50 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)
Skoda has built quite a reputation for its fun-to-drive models, and this is also a key driver of the Kylaq’s sales. Its 1.0-litre TSI engine produces 114bhp & 178Nm, which allows for a decent 0-100 km/h time, especially with the 6-speed torque converter unit.
Furthermore, Skoda has hinted at bringing the Kylaq with a 1.5-litre TSI engine, which would give the Kylaq’s 0-100 figure a major boost.
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Mahindra XUV3XO TGDI – 11.96s
Pricing – Rs 13.41 lakh – Rs 17.85 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)
The 1.2-litre TGDI engine of the XUV3XO is one of the most potent in its segment, producing 129bhp & 230Nm. We tested the 6-speed AT, but you could probably extract better performance from the manual gearbox. The 3XO is also offered with a 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel, and both engine options pack a solid punch. So as far as performance is concerned, the XUV3XO fares pretty well.
Fastest Compact SUVs – Kia Sonet Turbo-Petrol – 11.73s
Pricing – Rs 11.65 lakh – Rs 16.29 lakh (on-road, Mumbai)
The Kia Sonet clocked in the fastest 0-100km/h time at 11.73 seconds. The car we had on test was the 1.0-litre turbo-petrol automatic. Its 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine produces 118bhp & 172Nm. The Hyundai Venue and Kia Seltos, which share the same engine, perform similarly in these performance tests. It is also important to note that the responsive 7-speed DCT gearbox plays a key part in making it the fastest compact SUV in the country.
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