MG Hector is sold in Indonesia by China’s Wuling Motors as Almaz SUV – It will soon get a new RS variant
China’s SAIC sells the Hector SUV in many countries around the world – but under different names, different brands. In India, it is sold by MG as Hector. In China, it is Baojun 530. It is also sold as Chevrolet Captiva in select Asian countries while in Indonesia, it is sold by Wuling Motors under the name Almaz. All are basically the same, but just different names and a little styling change here and there.
Now, it is this Almaz SUV which has been spotted in a new RS variant in Indonesia. Spied undisguised by Facebook Group Almazers, these are the first photos of the Wuling Almaz RS – a new top of the line variant which will be launched soon.
Design
From the images, one can notice that the RS variant of Hector based Almaz gets blacked out treatment in the front, along with a touch of red. The LED DRL on the top remains the same, and so does the headlight setup. Grille is different, and also gets a blacked out treatment.
There is a red strip which runs across the front headlight setup. Lower bumper is in black and is now a lot more sporty. It gets modified to house the radar module for the ADAS features.
Apart from the design updates, the RS variant also gets ADAS features. ADAS stands for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems. In India, MG offers ADAS on board their flagship Gloster SUV, which rivals the Fortuner and Endeavour SUVs. On board Gloster, ADAS features include adaptive cruise control, automatic breaking, automatic parking assist, blind spot detection, forward collision warning, lane departure warning.
Hector Savvy For India
Gloster is India’s 1st autonomous Level 1 car, and is certainly not the last. There have been reports that MG has plans to offer ADAS on board the Hector as well as on their upcoming ZS petrol SUV in India. Hector is rumoured to get a new top of the line SAVVY variant, which will have the ADAS features.
ADAS uses a radar module which is located in the front of the car. In the Wuling Almaz RS variant above, you can notice the radar module fitted in the lower bumper, in the center. With MG planning to offer the ADAS features on multiple cars, competition is also getting ready for the same. Radar module have been spotted in the upcoming 2021 Mahindra XUV500 SUV, which will launch in India later this year.
Engine Specs
Engine specs will remain same as current Hector. These include a 1.5 liter turbo petrol engine offering 143 PS power and 250 Nm torque and a 1.5 liter turbo intercooled petrol hybrid engine capable of 143 PS power and 250 Nm torque. It will also be offered with a 2.0 liter turbo diesel engine with 170 PS power and 350 Nm torque. 6 speed manual gearbox is standard while the 1.5 liter petrol engine also gets a 6 speed DCT. It will also get a CVT option soon in India.
It is possible that the design updates which are seen on board the Wuling Almaz RS above, are also offered on the upcoming Hector Savvy variant in India. More details will be available closer to launch date.
