Hyundai PH hints on bringing the Reina subcompact sedan

See, the thing with a teaser is it stimulates the curiosity of anyone who sees it. This is why brands and their marketing teams utilize such a gimmick, as they are effective in sparking the hype. This happens to be the reason why news about an upcoming new model from Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI) is circulating the internet; another subcompact sedan named Reina to be more specific. 

For those who don’t follow, Hyundai Philippines has been posting a series of teaser photos on its Facebook account. The craze started last January 28, when Hyundai PH posted a photo with the line, “Help me find the one.” At the time, no one seemed to know what Hyundai PH was up to. It could’ve been anything; a lifestyle event or possibly a viral ad for an existing model. Who knew? It just showed a man’s silhouette with a moonlit city background.

However, things began to change when Hyundai PH posted a photo the following day. The line “R you ready to meet the one?” is saying that it wasn’t related to a lifestyle event or existing model at all. Clearly, the brand is talking about bringing in a new car. There was an orange car with its lower half covered in gradient – that’s one hint. The second hint is that the word “are” is spelled ‘R’. So, Hyundai’s new car’s name starts with the letter R.

Fast forward a little and news about a subcompact sedan dubbed “Reina” was all over the internet. Fast forward a little more and a third picture was posted by the South Korean brand. Now, it’s out there; Hyundai PH is backing up its lineup with another subcompact sedan. So, what is this Reina? 

HARI is already offering a subcompact sedan in the Philippine market and we think most people are familiar with it. In fact, the Accent is doing great if we are to base it on the sales report issued by HARI. This could be a conflict, as the Reina is also a subcompact sedan. Unless there’s a hatchback model of this nameplate, everything will start to make sense. However, upon doing some googling, there are no known hatchback iterations of the Reina.

We also do have to disclose that the Reina is manufactured in China, which makes it a car from a neighboring country. To give you some idea, the Reina runs with a 1.4-liter engine that’s capable of 94 hp and 132 Nm of torque. Transmission options are a five-speed manual and four-speed automatic, transmitting power to the front wheels. It’s a little short by few millimeters compared to the Accent, including the wheelbase. 

So, does this mean HARI is planning to offer a cheaper car with generally higher specifications? Really, why is HARI bringing another subcompact sedan in the market when the Accent’s performance is all-time positive? We also can’t help but think about the coincidence of this with the Kia launch slated to happen today, January 30, 2019. 

We guess there will be answers at the launch tomorrow, January 31, 2019, and we all just have to wait for that. However, we can’t see HARI abandoning the Accent so we’re more likely looking at an intra-competition in Hyundai’s subcompact sedan class in the country. We’ll have to confirm that and keep you posted once we have HARI’s word.