Hyundai Bayon confirmed as sub-Kona SUV

Hyundai has released an official teaser of its upcoming Hyundai Bayon that it's created to sit below the Kona in its SUV range.

Developed to compete against the likes of the Nissan JUKE, Mazda CX-3 and other small SUVs like the Volkswagen T-Cross, the new pint-sized Hyundai is believed to have been named after Bayonne, a city in south-west France.

If there's a heavy European influence here it's because the Bayon has been designed specifically for this market, while other countries such as Australia already have the Hyundai Venue as the Korean brand's entry-level SUV.

Hyundai has confirmed to carsales that there are no plans for the Bayon to be sold Down Under.

Set to be based heavily on the core Hyundai i20 range (also not available in Australia), the Bayon will be strictly front-wheel drive and offered with either a naturally-aspirated 1.2-litre four-cylinder or a more powerful turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder that gets mild-hybrid tech.

Previewed in a single shadowy teaser image, the small SUV gets chevron-shaped tail-lights (or sidelight graphics) and what looks like sharper styling all-round compared to the hatch.

Later on, it's feasible the Korean car-maker's performance division could produce a hot Bayon N, sharing the same 150kW turbocharged 1.6-litre as the recently revealed Hyundai i20 N which is due to launch in Australia early next year.

To be unveiled before the end of this year, the Hyundai Bayon is set to launch in Europe in the first half of 2021.